Shin Megami Tensei: Denizens of Darkness
by Ryuzuki98
Summary: Tetsuo Asakura and Kojiro Soma, along with their friends, learn about the existence of demons, hidden from human society, and are thrust in a battle which might decide the fate of their own world, a battle fought in darkness. Rewrite of Tokyo Mokushiroku, with elements from other media related to SMT.
1. 1st Night: Occult Club

****Author's Notes: This story has been inspired by the original OVA "Tokyo Revelation", and has been thought as a rewrite/extend of the story it tried to present. To this end, I've borrowed some elements from IV and Apocalypse, used to further extend the plot line. I've made this attempt with the most information I have coming from the OVA itself, with little to no knowledge of what's actually narrated in the manga, the true original material. So, I apologize in advance for probable plot mistakes. Also, if anyone could tell me a way to find the original manga and read it, I would be very grateful.****

 ** **That said, let's begin to delve into this new story of mine, my personal take of a story of Shin Megami Tensei.****

Shin Megami Tensei: Denizens of Darkness.

1st Night: Occult Club

 _ _A young man opened his__ _ _amber__ _ _eyes, finding a black night sky above him, devoid of any stars. An eerie moon scythe was the only light above him. He slowly sit up and found himself in a beautiful garden, with cherry trees in their full blossom. He slowly stood up and looked around, basking in the breathtaking scenario unfolding around him.__

 _ _Upon turning around, the young man noticed a path of torii gates stretching ahead of his vision. As soon as he moved his first step towards it, the wind began blowing.__ _ _The young man could feel it blowing among his black hair__ _ _.__

 _ _It got stronger. And stronger. And stronger.__

 _ _Eventually, it became strong enough to lift__ _ _him__ _ _from the grassy grounds of the garden. He found himself flying over the path of toori gates. As he looked under himself, his eyes fell upon a shrine.__

" _ _Tetsuo..."__

 _ _In that moment, he heard a voice. Strong, clearly audible.__

" _ _Can you hear me, Tetsuo?"__

 _ _As soon as those words were spoken, a lightning bolt flashed in the sky and thunder crackled loudly…__

A young man quickly opened his eyes, as if waking from a nightmare, and found that he was lying in his bed. He had short black hair and deep amber eyes. His room was orderly and well-lit, gently illuminated by sunlight.

" _ _That dream...__ " he couldn't help but think. It had not been the first time he had experienced it. With that thought in mind, he rose from his bed and began his day.

After getting changed into a red t-shirt, black jacket and black pants, tidying up his hair a bit and latching his portable computer to his arm, he went to the kitchen, where his mother, a woman with brown hair and hazelnut eyes, dressed in a white puff-sleeved shirt, an orange long skirt and a yellow apron, was waiting for him.

"Oh, good morning, Tetsuo!" she cheerfully called upon seeing her son.

"Good morning, mom!" he replied, in kind, as he sat at the kitchen table and waited for her to sit in front of him, with a smile on his face.

"And it's Monday again..." the woman couldn't help but sigh as she sat as well.

"It's never pleasant when the week begins..." Tetsuo added, eliciting a chuckle from his mother. With that said, both began eating their breakfast.

"Dad's out early again, right?" the youth asked

"Yes." she confirmed "You know how busy he is with work, lately..."

Upon finishing, Tetsuo immediately headed to the entrance of the house, putting his red shoes on. His destination was the school he was studying in: Kichijouji Seijou High.

"I'm off!" he said as he stepped outside of the house.

"Take care!" his mother called as he began to walk away.

Tetsuo Asakura always had to take the bus to reach his school. As he was on his way to the bus stop, he suddenly felt a mildly strong tap on his shoulder. As he turned, he recognized his close friend and neighbor, another young man with slightly spiky brown hair and shining brown eyes, dressed in a green shirt, under a maroon jacket, brown pants and green shoes, looking at him with a grin on his face.

"Hey, Tetsuo!" he cheerfully greeted him "How are you doing?"

"Oh, hello Ayumu!" the youth replied with a calm smile "I'm doing just fine. How about you?" At that question, his friend couldn't help but let out a sigh and hang his head a little.

"I'm bummed, like I always am on Mondays..." he said "It feels always too soon when the week starts..."

"I agree..." Tetsuo replied, scratching the back of his head "But it's much less of a pain if you're ready." This answer elicited a chuckle from Ayumu. As they chatted, they arrived at the stop without even noticing, in time for the bus.

In a short amount of time, the bus took the two friends to the path leading to the entrance gates of Seijou High. Upon reaching his destination, the two youths hopped off the bus and began walking towards the gates.

"Say, speaking of being ready..." Ayumu asked his friend, looking at him with a sly smile spread across his face while walking "Do you have this week's file ready?"

"Sure thing!" Tetsuo calmly replied "I have two copies right in my backpack. I'll hand them over to Hideaki at the club's meeting."

"Were you mentioning me, Tetsuo?" A serious, yet warm voice said from behind the two youths, making them quickly turn towards its source. They noticed a young man with short black hair and gray eyes, wearing glasses, dressed in a gray jacket over a white shirt and black tie, gray pants and black shoes, almost like a gakuran, and a girl with long red hair, some of which were collected in a side ponytail, and copper eyes, dressed in a bordeaux-red puff sleeved shirt, dark blue short skirt and thigh highs of the same color and bordeaux-red schoolgirl shoes, standing by his side. Kichijouji High did not have a particular dress code, while it did demand from its students to dress smart and decently.

"Good morning, Asakura-kun, Hirabayashi-kun!" the girl warmly greeted them, while the youth simply smiled.

"Oh, good morning, Hideaki, Murakami-san!" Tetsuo quickly replied, with a slight bow that elicited an amused laugh from Ayumu.

"Needlessly polite as always, huh?" he observed, before turning towards the two "Good morning, you two!"

"It's a lovely day, isn't it?" the girl mused as she playfully turned around.

"Yeah, it sure is..." Tetsuo mused as he rose his gaze to the sky.

"It's one of those days which makes you want to be anywhere else rather than at school!" Ayumu added, with a hearty laugh, while Hideaki's eyes slowly widened in realization.

"Er… Guys?" Hideaki tried to call his friends' attention, with the intent of warning them. But it was already too late. The girl swiftly turned around with an unsettling growl, wearing a Kishin mask on her face. Her gesture made the other three youths jump back in shock.

"Yikes!" Ayumu exclaimed.

"Izumi!" Hideaki called, as the girl removed her mask and laughed at the shock she had caused in her friends, then, he couldn't help but let out a sigh "You really love playing pranks with that stuff, don't you?"

"Because I use what I love to do it!" she replied quickly, putting her hands behind her back "That's my way of doing things, and you love me for it!" She then added with a wink, which made the youth sigh and smile.

"When you put it like that, I can't stay mad at you." he replied, which elicited a giggle from her.

"Oh, you." she replied, looking at him with adoring eyes. Hideaki gazed back at her, lovingly, while Ayumu shook his head with an amused chuckle.

"Birds of a feather flock together, as they say..." he remarked, to which Tetsuo nodded in agreement. Hideaki and Izumi turned back to their friends with beaming smiles.

"Speaking of which." the former began "What were you two discussing about before we came?"

"Oh, we were just talking about the file I've prepared for today..." Tetsuo replied.

"Two copies?" Hideaki asked.

"Yes, two copies ready." the youth readily replied.

"Excellent!" his friend smiled "As you know, today's file will be included as an insert in this week's issue of the Seijou newspaper." Tetsuo nodded at his friend's remark.

With that matter settled, the four friends entered the school to start their day. Hideaki was a third-year student, while the other three youths were in their second year. The first classes of the day passed swiftly. Then, when the break came, Tetsuo decided to step out of the class and into the corridor, which began to fill with life. Students were strolling about while chatting.

Tetsuo walked for a stretch, looking at the window. It was a spring day. Ayumu caught up to him.

"Enjoying the view?" he asked, with a grin on his face.

"Yeah." the youth answered, smiling in kind.

"The Hanami period is approaching..." Ayumu mused, turning his gaze towards the view that the corridor windows provided "Say, Tetsuo, are you planning to celebrate with your family?"

"We've not talked about it yet." his friend replied "But maybe we will arrange something."

"If not, we can always hang out together, y'know?" the energetic youth suggested, making his friend chuckle.

"Indeed." he replied.

"Hideaki and Izumi must be really looking forward to this..." Ayumu mused "And to spring in general." He then turned to his friend with a mischievous smirk on his face, which made him slightly raise a brow. "I mean, in spring, people spring it in the springs, if you know what I mean!" Tetsuo blushed at the statement.

"I know too much already, thank you." he replied.

"Well, the sakura flowers do teach us to make the most out of our short life, don't they?" a voice intervened in their conversation, making the two youths turn towards the source. It was another second-year, a young man with short brown hair and cobalt blue eyes, wearing glasses. He was dressed in a light blue shirt under a dark blue shirt, light blue jeans and dark turquoise shoes.

"Ah, Soma!" Tetsuo exclaimed in surprise with a slight bow, to which the youth smiled,

"Yo, Kojiro!" Ayumu cheerfully greeted.

"Good morning." Kojiro calmly replied, before gazing at the scenery as well.

" _ _That's true...__ " Tetsuo thought as he looked at the spring scenery unfolding before him and his fellow students " _ _Folklore puts it in many ways, but the core message is always that one. The sakura flowers represent the beauty of life, as well as its fragility.__ "

The three youths gazed at the view offered by the corridor windows for some time, before settling to head back to their classrooms. Kojiro turned to Tetsuo as he walked with him and Ayumu.

"I'm looking forward to seeing your work." he said, with a smile on his face.

"I hope my entry is to your liking, Soma..." the youth replied, scratching the back of his head, earning a pat on the back from his neighbor.

"Don't underestimate yourself, man!" he said, before turning to Kojiro "Don't worry, his file is going to blow your minds! You know that this guy can give you a run for your money!" The energetic youth's comment elicited a laugh from his friends, as well as himself.

"I'm sure everyone in our clubs will like it, Tetsuo." Kojiro reassuringly said to his classmate.

"I really hope so." Tetsuo replied, a hint of renewed confidence audible in his voice.

Eventually, the three youths reach their class and saw off Hideaki, who had been chatting with his girlfriend in the meantime, while he headed back to his own class. Shortly after, the second round of classes began. The students had little to no trouble in making the most of the lectures, until the school bells signaled the end of lessons for the day, and the start of club activities.

Tetsuo, Ayumu and Izumi headed to the class where the occult and folklore club of Seijou High held its meetings, and greeted its head, who also happened to be their friend, Hideaki Miyahara.

"Welcome, everyone." the youth replied with a smile, adjusting his glasses, upon seeing his friends enter the room, then looked at Tetsuo. "Are you ready to bring your research on the table?" He simply nodded and handed him one of the two copies of his work he had brought with himself.

"For the newspaper club.", he said, to which Hideaki nodded in approval.

"Yep, you definitely came prepared." Ayumu commented, with a huge grin plastered on his face.

"That's our Asakura-kun for you!" Izumi added, with a smile of her own, as she playfully folded her arms behind her back.

"Very well, it looks like everyone's here." Hideaki observed "Let's begin." Everyone nodded at that.

"Go get 'em, man!" Ayumu cheered for his friend, patting his shoulder, to which the youth chuckled in slight embarrassment. With that, the club meeting began. The members discussed various happenings in Japan that seemed to have supernatural explanations. Among these, there were rumors about a great part of the monitors decorating many buildings of Tokyo mysteriously going static at a given hour after midnight, according to some witnesses.

"With that said..." Hideaki said, once the debate had reached a certain length "Let's move to today's occult file, brought to us by Asakura Tetsuo." Tetsuo cleared his throat, preparing himself for his speech, while Izumi winked at him.

"Today, I will be talking about the Tengu, one of the most known creatures of Japanese folklore." he began "They are minor mountain gods, inhabiting in particular Mount Kurama, and are notably quite capricious. Their alignment is different, depending on the legend they are depicted in." He continued his speech, helping himself with images of the creatures which were the subject of his explanation.

"They are mainly divided in ko-tengu, the lesser Tengu, which include the infamous Karasu Tengu, and the dai-tengu, the higher Tengu. The ko-tengu, as the name implies, serve the dai-tengu in various mansions, delivering messages on their behalf among these, and are said to haunt and toy with humans in various ways. The dai-tengu, on the other hand, have never been depicted committing such acts. Moreover, it is said that the king of the Tengu, Sojobo, has taught the art of kenjutsu to the legendary hero Minamoto no Yoshitsune."

Once Tetsuo reached the end of his explanation, all his fellow club members began clapping at him, while Hideaki thanked him for his presentation.

After the meeting, Tetsuo met with his friends outside the classroom.

"That was an amazing presentation, Asakura-kun!" Izumi commented, with a smile on her face, as she moved a strand of her long hair behind her ear.

"I told you you would have nailed it!" Ayumu nudged his neighbor.

"Thank you, everyone!" Tetsuo replied, with a slight bow.

"Good afternoon, Asakura-kun." a sweet voice chimed from right behind the youth, prompting him to quickly turn around. Its source was a girl with long blonde hair and sea-hued eyes, dressed in a white short over a turquoise gilet jacket, a turquoise short skirt, white socks and black schoolgirl shoes. She was by the side of a young man with short and slightly untidy dark green hair and hazelnut eyes, wearing a white shirt under a red jacket with beige details, blue jeans and white shoes. Tetsuo and his friends knew him to be her boyfriend, and that they were both second-years, like him. Kojiro was with them, as well.

"Oh, hello Yagami-san! Miura! Soma!" Tetsuo quickly replied, with respectful bows.

"I've read your file." Miura spoke up "It was really impressive!"

"I know, right?" Ayumu added. The green-haired youth turned to Kojiro with a grin on his face.

"Looks like we made a good choice in trying this, right, Kojiro?" he asked, to which his friend smiled and nodded in agreement.

"It sure looks like it." he replied. Izumi and Hideaki smiled as well.

"Also, this is the first time we've included an article about occult in an issue." the girl called Yagami suggested, before turning to her boyfriend "Isn't that right, Yousuke?"

"Yeah, that's right, Saki!" the youth nodded, with an enthusiastic grin "Which makes it even better! With such an article, many more people will be interested in the occult as well!" Izumi gasped in happiness at the remark, her eyes shining, before she turned to her boyfriend.

"Have you heard, Hideaki?" she excitedly remarked "We might have to expect rises in our ranks anytime soon!"

"I hope so." her boyfriend smiled and nodded at the remark.

"But I digress." Yousuke said, still grinning and facing the writer of the successful file "Tetsuo, you've made quite a name for yourself with your writings. How 'bout you come writing something for us?"

"Wha?!" Tetsuo exclaimed, taken aback by the offer he was presented with.

"Yep." Yousuke nodded "I'm scouting you as head of the Seijou High newspaper club. You don't need to file an application or anything."

"Also, you don't need to quit being a member of the occult club in order to write for us." Kojiro added, with a gentle smile "In fact, that very membership could help you a lot in finding material to write about."

"Thank you for the offer, Miura..." Tetsuo replied, having recovered from the stupor, scratching the back of his head "I just need some time to think this through, before I jump the gun."

"That's cool by me." Yousuke cheerfully.

"We'll be looking forward to your reply, Asakura-kun!" Saki added, with a sweet smile on her face.

"See you tomorrow, Tetsuo." Kojiro smiled as well. Tetsuo nodded in response as the members of the newspaper club took their leave, then turned to his friends of the occult club for advice, looking at them with questioning and doubtful eyes.

"If I were you, I would try it." Izumi said, her smile filled with excitement.

"Sure, being a member of two clubs at the same time will definitely mean one hell of a workload..." Ayumu added "But it will also be loads of awesomeness!"

"With the newspaper club, your writing skills would only improve." Hideaki remarked "Not to mention, you could strive to make the occult article a permanent feature and thus draw more attention to our club!"

"Someone like you could get through that without breaking a sweat!" Tetsuo found himself encouraged by his friends' words. His uncertainty was not completely gone, but had been surely struck.

"Thank you, guys..." he thanked, before replying "It does sound really interesting, but I think I need to get ready to do it, first."

"To reduce backlog homework would be essential." Hideaki added, while nodding in agreement.

"Indeed." Tetsuo sighed. Intrigued as he was with the opportunity he was faced with, he was not blinded by the amount of effort that would have been required for it.

" _ _After all...__ " he thought " _ _Every action requires a good amount of effort and knowledge.__ "


	2. 2nd Night: First Encounter

2nd Night: First Encounter

At the end of the activities, the four friends were at the school gates, ready to head home.

"If you make your decision, let us know, tomorrow." Hideaki said, to which Tetsuo nodded.

"But, knowing you, I know you'll think this through." Izumi added, with a smile.

"And, should you accept, I know you'll rock it!" Ayumu added, excitedly, to which the amber-eyed youth blushed.

"That wasn't needed!" he retorted, eliciting a laugh from all of his friends.

"Well then, see you tomorrow." Hideaki said, to which his friend nodded. Then, the four of them went their separate ways. Tetsuo and Ayumu headed to their neighborhood, while Hideaki accompanied Izumi to her house, before heading to his own.

"You must be really happy!" Ayumu remarked, while on his way home with his friend "Should you accept, you will be allowed to write what you do best!"

"Well, it's only natural." Tetsuo replied "Specialization is a key factor when working in journalism."

"Specialization?" Ayumu said "So, basically everyone writes what he does best?"

"Exactly." his neighbor confirmed, with a nod "And the best entries are taken and published in the edition."

"Awesome!" Ayumu said "Well, your entries would pass and be published hands down!" The comment made Tetsuo blush from embarrassment.

"That's not a given, you know..." he retorted, making his friend chuckle. Before they knew it, the two neighbors arrived in front of Ayumu's house.

"See you, man!" he cheerfully saw his friend off.

"See you tomorrow!" Tetsuo saw him off as well, before walking the short distance separating his house from his friend's.

At the door of his house, someone was waiting for him.

"Welcome back, Tetsuo!" she smiled sweetly at her son.

"Thank you, mom." he replied, with a smile of his own "Is dad back already?"

"Yes, he is." his mother confirmed, with a nod "He's inside, waiting for you." Tetsuo nodded and entered his house.

"Hello, dad!" he greeted his father upon seeing him inside.

"Welcome home, Tetsuo." the man greeted his son back, to which the youth smiled.

"Dinner will be ready soon" Tetsuo's mother added "We can't wait to hear how your day went." The amber-eyed youth nodded at her words with a bright smile.

"I do have quite a bit to tell." he replied, before heading upstairs.

Upon reaching his room, he turned his portable computer on and quickly navigated through its apps and folders. The process was made much easier by the touch screen it featured, being a more recent model. Tetsuo opened a folder in which material for the club was collected and began revising it: information about countless demons, which he had collected in months, and data about incidents, recent and remote, which were highly susceptible to supernatural speculation.

He got lost in the labyrinth of the hidden truths he had been so passionate about since he was a child, until the calling of his mother pulled him out of his reverie.

"Tetsuo! Dinner's ready!"

"Coming, mom!" he replied, hurrying downstairs to join his parents. He sat at the table with them and clasped his hands together, as if in prayer, before eating.

"Itadakimasu!"

During dinner, the family discussed the happenings of the day.

"So, what happened at work, Soichiro?" Tetsuo's mother asked her husband.

"Well, we might be working on something big from now on." the man replied. "In fact, me and the other boys of Mirai have recently gotten our hands on useful information, that will surely help us in improving our devices."

"That's awesome!" Tetsuo cheered for his father.

"I'm sure you are." Soichiro turned to his son, with a bit of a smug smile "After all, you know you owe that screen you have on your arm to us."

"Oh, I know." Tetsuo replied, with a smirk of his own.

"And you?" the father asked "What do you have to tell us, young man?"

"I have some tales to tell you." the son calmly replied, with a cheerful smile "I had club activity today." His words elicited a chuckle from both of his parents, as well as himself.

"We all know how passionate you are about mythology, occult and whatever surrounds it." his mother remarked, to which her husband nodded.

"Of course, I'm not done yet." the youth added "After today's meeting, I've been offered a place in the staff of the newspaper of Seijou High!" The news surprised his parents.

"That's quite the offer!" his mother commented, her hands clasped together in delight.

"It's one not to be taken lightly, my boy." Soichiro added, not hiding his amazement, but showing more caution as well.

"I know that, dad." Tetsuo nodded "Given what I talk about, it should be no surprise what I will write about on the newspaper, should I accept."

"It's important for a journalist to have a message to spread through his work." the man continued "Do you have one?"

"I do." his son replied "Do I need to go over this again? There's a reason behind my passion for mythos. The lore of gods and demons hides under its surface countless truths from which mankind should learn as much as possible. Every god, every demon, every lore out there embodies a truth, a message left in this world. Each truth holds an incredible value, which can't be questioned. It is from their births that human societies were born, and it is from the intersection of these myriad truths that humanity can find ways to make his world a better place."

"It's a beautiful way of seeing things." the youth's mother commented with a smile.

"Yes, it is an interesting point of view, and it's always great to sense earnest thought behind one's words..." her husband added "But I can't say I fully agree with you. I mean, is it really necessary to give so much weight to superstitions?"

"You can't deny that many of these mythos have left us incredibly valuable teachings as their legacy." Tetsuo calmly objected "Heck, one could say that some of this lore conditions us to this very day!"

"No, I can't deny it." Soichiro replied, with a chuckle of amusement which also showed respect for the honest commitment of his son to his ideas "Nor did I ever intend to. But should we humans give them such weight in this day and age? I can admire your passion for doing so, but personally, I'm not too sure it's the way that leads to progress."

"You're not one too prone to believe in lore and fantasy, are you?" the amber-eyed youth said, with a smile "Well, not that I could expect anything else from a man who works in a tech company." His statement elicited laughter in everyone sitting at the table.

"Exactly." his father replied, while still laughing at his witty remark. "But there's one thing that I did teach you." he continued, in a more serious tone "Always be open to what's different." Tetsuo nodded firmly at his father's words. That much could not be denied, as it was a teaching that the youth held very close to his heart.

"Let it sink into your heart and become nourishment for the soil of your soul..." they both said in unison.

"Well, working in the school newspaper would surely give you the chance to spread your message, right?" his mother observed.

"That's right." Tetsuo quickly replied, with a nod "You should know that there's another student in the newspaper club who shares these beliefs of mine."

"Good for you." Soichiro smiled.

"Isn't it a little ironic, though?" his wife said, turning to him with a broad smile "That the son of a worker of a tech monster such as Mirai Inc. is passionate about mythos?"

"Who knows..." the man replied, with a chuckle "Maybe his son will walk a path more like mine in the future." the playful banter elicited laughter in everyone seated at that table.

Eventually, the dinner came to an end.

"Thank you for the meal." everyone said, clasping their hands together as if in prayer, then Tetsuo stood up and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going, Tetsuo?" his mother asked.

"I'm gonna take a nightly walk in town." the youth readily replied. "Want to breathe in some fresh air. I'll take this time to think over the offer."

"Be careful." Soichiro told his son, not hiding his worry.

"Don't worry dad, I will." he replied, with a nod, before heading out.

He walked along the streets of Kichijouji, filled with night walkers strolling about and illuminated by the lights of the town, overflowing with nightly life. The offer was not the only thing on his mind as he walked.

" _ _I've lost track of the times my father and I have talked about this...__ " he thought " _ _Mythos has always fascinated me, and I think that we should learn from it, for it depicts not only shining examples, but also dire mistakes. These truths always have the ability to shed light on our lives,__ _ _and when you think how old many of these message are, written by people who walked this earth way before us, makes it all the more astounding__ _ _. He, on the other hand, walks another path. He believes that the past is not too relevant and that man should focus on looking at the path ahead of him and walking forward, discovering new truths.__ " As his thoughts ran wild, he rose his gaze to the half moon as he walked.

" _I look at the moon while he's looking at the sun._ _ _But we're not fighting over it.__ " fond memories of his father were crossing his mind " _ _I can't know how much I've influenced my father with these beliefs of mine, but my father has always taught me so much. I've learned from him that sharing is an important part of being human. That goes with knowledge and beliefs as well. If only people talked more openly and shared more, instead of clinging to extreme levels to their own faith, life would be so much better for everyone...__ " A smile crept its way on his face.

" _ _Long story short, we believe that mankind can choose the truths he wants to follow in his life,__ _ _and can draw onto the truths carried by others to make his own stronger. That has the potential to__ _ _improve__ _ _his life and__ __ _ _those__ _ _of his fellows, too.__ " he thought as he continued walking " _ _And that truths don't necessarily have to be opposites. In fact, they complete one another. Every truth shines in its own right, but two or more can create such a beautiful light that could rival even the sun. This is the light that shines upon humanity. I want to spread this message, and to work with the newspaper club would be a__ _ _great chance to do so. A__ _ _chance not to miss. I'll let Hideaki, Murakami-san and Ayumu know tomorrow.__ "

Suddenly, a strange figure caught his attention, interrupting his train of thought. It seemed to follow a man that was walking quite drunkenly among the crowd. Due to the many people blocking the view, it was not possible to see it properly, but what was more shocking is the fact that no one seemed to notice it, not even the drunken man who was being followed. Not fully understanding the situation, Tetsuo decided to discreetly follow the man, and the figure.

Eventually, when the two arrived at the end of a rather narrow and dimly lit alley, Tetsuo could scarcely believe what was in front of his eyes. The figure was that of a big, burly, red-skinned humanoid monster with two horns and a single spike of hair on its head, standing tall, wearing a purple cloak, purple shorts and purple kung fu shoulders complete with white short socks, and wielding an oversized spear, which seemed to have a shovel-like edge at its bottom end, in one of his hands. He noticed that he was holding a bottle of beer in his other hand, and quickly understood that it had snatched it from the drunken man, who was simply sitting there in awe and fear.

"Wh-what the hell?" the man shouted in disbelief "M-My bottle is flying?!" At his words, the creature chuckled in amusement, with a hint of malice in his voice.

"It's funny to tease humans like this!" it said. While Tetsuo saw this scene unfolding in front of him, a realization dawned on him.

" _ _I can see that creature, but he can't?__ " he thought. In that moment, the monster put the bottle in his mouth and began chugging the beer, until there was no more left, much to the man's chagrin.

"Nooo! My booze! It's disappearing!" he drunkenly cried out. As the creature finished the beer, it sighed in satisfaction.

"Man, humans' booze tastes real good!" it said, before tossing away the glass bottle, which broke apart.

"You look tasty, too, human!" it said, looking at the shocked man. "Meat and booze in one bout! I couldn't ask for a better ni-..." it paused, feeling like something was watching it, and slowly turned around, its piercing light blue eyes seeing Tetsuo, who jumped back in fear. The creature slightly backed off as well, in surprise.

"Who… What are you?" the amber-eyed youth asked. In understanding that he was talking to it, the creature's turquoise eyes widened in stupor.

"Oh, crap! A human that can see me?!" it exclaimed, then it began eyeing the young man. "Hmmm… Your magnetite..."

" _ _Magnetite? What is it talking about?__ " Tetsuo thought, as a devilish smile sprung up on the creature's features, putting its fangs on full display " _ _Is… Is it a demon?__ " .

"Oooooh, now I get it!" it said, then, with a chuckle, gripped on its spear "Well, lookit what I caught! Even juicier meat!" Then, it began twirling its spear in its hand and stepped towards Tetsuo, whose eyes widened in fear as he stepped back "Put up your fists and keep up with me, if you can!"

"Hold on right there!" A firm female voice suddenly shouted from behind the youth, who quickly turned towards the source, seeing a brown-eyed girl with short brown hair, dressed in a orange hoodie, short blue jeans and dark brown boots. Her hood was up.

" _ _A-A girl? And she can see this monster, too!__ " he thought, as she extended her arm and opened up her own portable computer, latched onto it.

"Another human?!" the creature exclaimed.

"You're not getting any meat, Oni." she said, glaring at the creature "I'll take you down."

" _ _Oni?!__ " Tetsuo thought, looking back at the demon " _ _So it is a demon!__ "

"That thing..." the demon said, its eyes narrowing inquisitively, before widening in realization "Are you one of those demon-huntin' people?!" Just as it finished speaking, the girl pressed on the screen of her portable computer and, in a flash of light, another creature appeared behind her. It had black wings and was covered from head to toe with a black garb, its head covered by a black monk mask. It wielded a staff, with a staff on one of its ends, and the youth immediately recognized it as the demon he had talked about that very morning.

" _ _K-Karasu Tengu?!__ " he thought, his eyes wide in shock, as the winged demon lunged towards Oni and its staff clashed with the burly demon's spear. Immediately, the girl picked up a knife from under the sleeve of her hoodie and rushed at it as well, while it kept clashing with her demon.

"Not foolin' me, girl!" Oni said, noticing her coming at him, and tried to headbutt the black-winged demon, who avoided the blow and flew away from it, leaving the girl able to jump at him and attempt to strike him with her knife, which was quickly met with the demon's spear.

"Karasu!" the girl called.

"Got it!" the demon replied, and, as if on cue, began twirling its staff in its hands, producing gusts of wind that eased the girl's movements, allowing her to leap on Oni's shoulders and jump higher from them, towards her demon. Some more swings of Karasu Tengu's staff produced blades of wind that struck the burly demon on the chest, making him fall to the ground.

"Urgh! You're pretty good..." the demon uttered as it fell on its back. The girl grabbed the end of Karasu Tengu's staff and the black-winged demon began spinning around in the air with her, until…

"Now!" she called, and the demon spun one last time, throwing the girl, who let go of the staff and held her knife, ready to stab her opponent. The knife was engulfed in mysteriously blue flames, due to a fire enchant cast on it by Karasu. The girl fell on top of Oni and stabbed its head with the knife, then slashed him down his body, almost as if cutting him in half. A thin line of blue fire lit up on the cut as a result. As the girl walked away from the demon and towards a speechless Tetsuo, while pulling down her hood, Oni groaned in agony as it was engulfed by the flames, some stones glowing of an eerie green light flying away from its corpse.

"You should go home now." she recommended him, in a serious tone. "Forget this ever happened." In response, the amber-eyed youth shook his head.

"I can't." he objected "Not after seeing what I saw tonight! And certainly not without an explanation."

"Do you understand that this is dangerous?" the girl insisted.

"And that's exactly why I can't just forget about this!" Tetsuo replied "Is it really wrong to ask for answers?" The girl's eyes narrowed in annoyance, only to widen in realization in a moment's time.

" _ _Wait, he saw the demons, didn't he?__ " she thought. " _ _That means...__ " Finally, she spoke again.

"When are you free, tomorrow?" she asked.

"By five o'clock, I should be free." the amber-eyed youth readily replied, to which the girl nodded.

"If you want answers..." she continued. "…Meet me tomorrow at five o'clock in Inokashira Park."

"Understood." Tetsuo replied, with a nod.

"And, of course, you mustn't let this slip from your tongue!" she recommended him, to which he nodded in agreement, being aware of the confusion and panic that such a revelation would cause at the wrong time.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then." Tetsuo finally said, to which the girl nodded in confirmation. With that, the two went their separate ways. Tetsuo was aware of the danger of what he had witnessed.

And that it was only the beginning, his first encounter with a dark underworld, hidden to most human eyes…


	3. 3rd Night: Hidden Truth

3rd Night: Hidden Truth

" _Can you hear me, Tetsuo?_ "

Tetsuo Asakura woke up to the same dream he had the previous day.

"A-Again?" he exclaimed, in disbelief, before getting up. After his bizarre supernatural meeting of that very night, he had returned home, doing his best to act as if nothing ever happened in front of his family. After recovering, he headed to the kitchen for breakfast, where his mother was waiting for him.

"Good morning, Tetsuo!" she said, with a cheerful smile.

"Good morning, mom." Tetsuo replied, managing a smile of his own, as he sat across her at the table, and began eating his breakfast.

"Say, what did you decide to do about that proposal?" the mother asked.

"I'll take it." her son replied, without hesitation.

"Really? That's great!" she cheered, clasping her hands in delight. "Do you know when you'll be working with them?"

"I think I'm supposed to discuss it today." Tetsuo replies, scratching the back of his head, to which his mother walked out of her seat and patted her son's shoulder, with a smile on her face "Just make sure to not overwork yourself."

"Don't worry, mom." Tetsuo replied, looking up at her with a reassuring smile of his own "I'll take care of myself."

After breakfast, he saw his mother off and headed to school as usual, meeting his neighbor and friend Ayumu Hirabayashi along the way.

"Hey there, Tetsuo!" he cheerfully greeted the amber-eyed youth.

"Hello, Ayumu!" Tetsuo replied, waving at him with a smile. They began walking together to the bus stop.

"So, have you decided what to do about that offer?" Ayumu asked his friend, to which he nodded.

"I'll accept it." he replied. The youth's neighbor chuckled at his reply.

"Awesome! You'll rock it, I know it!" he said, cheerfully.

"Thank you, Ayumu." Tetsuo gratefully replied. "I'll definitely need your support." Ayumu chuckled once more in response.

"Say, any ideas about what you might have to write next for them?" he asked.

"Not really." he replied "I know that I'll be writing inserts about occult, but not much else other than that. As far as I know, I might even have to write about other topics, in some situations..."

"You know what Hideaki would say." Ayumu replied. "It's not the topic that makes the writer. When a writer's good, he's good with every topic." Tetsuo's chuckle was a little tense.

"I just hope I can hold the candle." he replied "There must be many other good writers in there, and it's not about being the best writer, but about recording the chosen news faithfully and clearly."

"See?" Ayumu smiled cheerfully at his declaration "You know what you should do when you're in there! That's a damn good place to start, in my book." This time, the amber-eyed youth's chuckle was much less tense, and his friend and neighbor added his own.

Like any other day, the two friends got in the bus that would have taken them to the school entrance, but Tetsuo's eyes instinctively wandered among the seats, to see if there was anything strange, any sign of creatures like the one he had seen the previous night. Much to his relief, there was no such thing in the bus.

" _ _If I've understood correctly, not everyone can see those demons...__ " he thought " _ _But I can't be the only one to see them… What are they after? My friends, or even any other person who lives in this town, for that matter, could be a target...__ " Of course, he made an effort to conceal his thoughts from his friend.

Eventually, the bus arrived at its stop, and Tetsuo and Ayumu dropped off of it, heading to the school's main gates. Before long, both were in front of their friends, Hideaki Miyahara and Izumi Murakami.

"Good morning, you two!" the red-haired girl greeted them, with a bright smile. Her boyfriend smiled at them as well.

"Good morning, Hideaki! Murakami-san!" Tetsuo greeted them back, with a smile on his own face. Ayumu rose his hand in greeting as well, as the two neighbors walked towards their friends.

"Tetsuo..." the third-year asked his schoolmate while adjusting his glasses "Have you thought about the offer to join the Newspaper Club?" the amber-eyed youth nodded in response.

"I accept." he finally said. "I'll do it." His reply immediately sparked a wider smile from Hideaki and a squeal of excitement from Izumi, who gave her friend a thumbs up.

"I knew you would have made this choice." Hideaki said "At lunch break, meet me, Miura and Kuki in the hallway. We'll discuss your schedule there." Tetsuo nodded in response.

After their discussion, the four students headed to their classes, and their school day started. During class, Tetsuo's eyes wandered around the classroom, searching for strange signs, just like he had done on the bus. Thankfully, he never was too obvious about it, and always made sure to keep track of the most important points of the lessons. And so, the lessons went smoothly until lunch break came.

Once the bells rang, the youth headed to the hallway to meet with Hideaki and the members of the Newspaper Club. He was followed by Yousuke, who nudged him with a huge grin, knowing of his choice, making him chuckle a little embarrassedly. Before they knew it, they were in front of Hideaki and his fellow 3rd year student, Takehiko Kuki, member of the Newspaper Club, wearing a brown gilet jacket over a yellow buttoned shirt which hugged his muscled frame, and blue jeans, complete with brown shoes.

"Hello there, Asakura." the quite imposing 3rd year greeted.

"Good morning, Kuki." Tetsuo replied, with a smile on his face.

"So, as you know..." Hideaki began "The Newspaper Club's meetings overlap with those of the Occult Club."

"So you'll need to pick a time to join us." Yousuke added, to which the amber-eyed youth nodded in agreement.

"I thought that I could meet with the Newspaper Club every Wednesday and a Friday every two weeks, since normally I would have Occult Club Meetings on Fridays." he said.

"Sounds like a plan." Yousuke grinned, as Takehiko stepped towards him and patted his shoulder with a smile.

"Welcome to the Kichijouji Seijou Newspaper Club." he said, to which Tetsuo smiled back.

"Tomorrow will be your first day!" Yousuke excitedly remarked "Don't miss, 'cause it's gonna be a real party cracker!" His cheer caused his fellow students to chuckle.

"Don't worry, Miura." Tetsuo assured "I'm not planning to miss."

Yousuke and Tetsuo turned, intending to return to their class, and found a petite girl, with pink hair and amber eyes of her own on their way. She was wearing a pink dress with puff sleeves, and sandals decorated with red gems. Another peculiar feature was the golden pendant she had on her neck, shaped as a circle containing a six-pointed star. They immediately recognized her.

"S-Shibusawa-san?" Tetsuo exclaimed.

"Kyoko-chan! What are you doing around here?" Yousuke asked her.

"Oh, good morning." the girl replied "I was passing by, when I happened to overhear your conversation. Oh, I almost forgot." She then got closer to Tetsuo, with a smile on her face. "Asakura Tetsuo, your occult insert was a lovely read."

"Ah, I-I'm glad you liked it, Shibusawa-san." Tetsuo replied, a tad embarrassedly, eliciting a chuckle from Yousuke.

"Tetsuo, she's a freshman, you know?" he remarked "Tone it down a bit." His classmate blushed in response, eliciting a sweet giggle from the girl.

"I'm looking forward to read more from you." Kyoko continued "It would be precious information for everyone."

"I'm not too sure about that, Kyoko-chan." Yousuke objected "But it would definitely be a pleasant read." Kyoko puffed her cheeks a bit in annoyance, only to sigh.

"Believe what you will, Yousuke." she said, before turning to Tetsuo "It's sad that so many people are losing sight of myths and what they represent..." Tetsuo nodded at her remark.

"That's partly the reason why I joined the Newspaper Club." he replied "My wish is to share my knowledge in that regard and remind the readers of their significance." A smile sprung on the girl's features.

"I knew you would understand." she said "Well, I have to head back to class now. Bye-bye!" she waved at the two sophomores and turned around to head back to her classroom.

"Bye-bye!" Tetsuo waved back, along with Yousuke, before heading back to his own class with him.

"There's your way of believing in the occult, and then there's Kyoko's way." Yousuke joked. "Not that I have anything against it!"

"Well, at least we're sure to have one fan of my inserts." Tetsuo retorted "If I write them well, that is..." Once he finished speaking, the head of the school newspaper patted his classmate on the shoulder.

"Don't sweat it, Tetsuo." he said, with a huge grin "I'm sure you'll pass it with flying colors!" His encouragement succeeded in putting a smile on Tetsuo's face.

"Thank you, Miura." he replied, eliciting a giggle from the untidy-haired young man, just before the two youths entered their class. And so, the lessons continued on.

" _ _Shibusawa Kyoko-san...__ " Tetsuo thought " _ _I wonder if she's able to see the demons as well, given her faith in demons...__ " these thoughts were swimming in his mind as the lessons went on. However, he was wise enough not to let them slip from his expressions. Eventually, the lessons ended, and the time to head back came.

"Congratulations for your entrance in the Newspaper Club!" Izumi happily said, as she headed out of the school gates with her friends.

"Thank you, Murakami-san..." Tetsuo replied, thoughtfully "But this is just the beginning. Let's see how working for them will prove..." At that, the girl tapped on his shoulder with mild force.

"Don't worry! You'll be just fine in there!" she remarked, making her friend smile in gratitude. Eventually, the two met Hideaki and Ayumu in front of the gates, intending to see them off.

"See you tomorrow, then." Hideaki said, as Izumi walked beside him "Good luck with your work for the newspaper."

"Thank you, Hideaki." Tetsuo replied, with a nod "I know I'll need it. See you tomorrow!" With that said, Hideaki and his girlfriend began walking away.

"So, what are you doing?" Ayumu asked, turning to his friend.

"I guess I'll take a walk in the park." the amber-eyed youth replied. His statement elicited a chuckle from his neighbor.

"Must be having a lot of stuff to go over in your mind." he said, to which Tetsuo nodded. "I guess I'll just go home and catch some z's. See you around!" The two friends waved at each other as they went their separate ways.

As he headed to the park, Tetsuo messaged his mother, notifying her about his "walk" in the Inokashira Park. Fortunately, she showed no objections.

"Be careful, ok?" he read on his message log.

"Don't worry, mom. I will. ^_^" he typed back, before putting his phone back in his pocket. As he walked to the park, the events of the previous night occupied his mind.

" _ _Those demons...__ " he kept thinking " _ _And the way that girl fought alongside the Tengu… Hopefully meeting her will give me a clearer understanding of this mess...__ " He also understood that he was in front of something far greater than himself, and that there was no turning back.

Before long, the amber-eyed youth found himself in the Inokashira Park. It was a vast green area, housing a long, narrow lake bearing the same name. There were some people strolling about, and the sakura trees, despite not being in their full bloom, still were able to catch many admiring gazes.

Tetsuo looked around, searching for the girl he planned to meet. He had come half an hour before the agreed meeting time, but he was ready to wait. In a quite unexpected, but not unwelcome twist, he found her in a short amount of time, standing next to a tree. Eventually, she noticed him as well, and walked towards him.

"Have you been waiting for long?" he asked her, to which the mysterious girl shook her head.

"I had just arrived here." she replied, a stoic expression on her face "You came rather early..." At those words, Tetsuo couldn't hold back a sigh.

"I couldn't get what happened last night out of my mind..." he began explaining "To think that demons exist, and are hiding under our nose… I just can't look at the world around me the same way, anymore..." He found himself at a loss of words, and couldn't help but sigh "There is too little that I know, and I came here in hopes of finding some answers."

"I can understand how you're feeling..." the girl replied, with a nod "I'll tell you what I know. Yes, demons exist physically. They hide under the surface of our world, and can come out at a moment's notice, but we can see them. Not only that. We have a way to summon and command them, thus fighting fire with fire."

"Yes, I've seen how you fought with the Karasu Tengu that was accompanying you..." the amber-eyed youth remarked "The only question is… How can one do it?" In response, the girl lifted her arm, onto which her portable computer was laced, then opened it, and started an application on it. When she showed it to Tetsuo, the image of a demon summoning circle was on the screen, before it switched to a menu with various options.

"This is the Demon Summoning Program." the girl said "It does exactly what its name suggests. It analyzes demons and allows to negotiate with them, create a contract with them, and even summon them."

"A computer program?" Tetsuo asked, in slight disbelief? "How does it work?"

"To learn how to use it is relatively easy." she replied "As for how it works… I don't really know. My guess would be that they've copied summoning rituals in script coding… Somehow."

"So you haven't created it?" the question rose spontaneously in the youth's mind. In response, the girl shook her head.

"I don't know who has created it and for what reasons, but it's currently being updated and distributed by a man known as S, as a way to counter demons."

"S?" Tetsuo asked.

"Yes." the girl replied, with a nod "He writes emails to the users of the program." The amber-eyed youth nodded as well, in understanding.

"Normally, I would find all of this unbelievable..." he mused "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, that is."

"It's completely understandable." the girl said "I don't think I need to tell you, but you've stumbled upon a hidden truth, one that we weren't meant to see, and now there's no turning back. You should consider your old life over, in a way." Tetsuo nodded in agreement.

"Like I said, it's hard to look at things the same after seeing what I saw last night." he replied "I don't think I can go back to my normal life anyway..."

"You seem to grasp how serious this is." the girl noticed, relief could be seen in her eyes.

"Not completely." he replied "But to a degree."

"That'll do, for now." the girl said. "Open your computer and activate the bluetooth. I'll pass you the program now." Tetsuo did as he was told, booting up his portable computer and activating its bluetooth feature. The girl then tapped on the screen and keyboard of her own computer and it took only a few seconds for her to transfer something into the youth's computer. It seemed to be an installer for an application.

"The installation will roughly take an hour." the girl explained "Start it as soon as you get home, then meet me here tonight. We'll head to your first hunt."

"Hunt?" the question slipped from Tetsuo's mouth.

"Yes, by that, I mean your first battle." the girl replied, with a nod "With this program, we must protect humans from demons, and even vice versa, but we need proper training in how to use what we're given if we're to do that. Tonight, I'll provide you with a quick course about the program." The amber-eyed youth expressed his understanding with a nod of his own, but his face still bore signs of astonishment and uncertainty. Fortunately, she was quick to understand his feelings.

"Of course, I've felt like you feel right now, before." she claimed "You don't need to worry. You will know more and grow as you'll continue on this path. For now, just know that you can only go forward from now on."

"I understand." Tetsuo replied, with a nod "I guess it's the only way..." he said, thoughtfully.

"Oh, and another thing." the girl said, catching his attention. "You'll need a weapon. Which one do you think you would be able to use best?"

"Well..." he thought about it, before answering "I've done quite a bit of kendo while I was in middle school..."

"Perfect." she said, not needing to hear any more, still bearing a stoic expression "I have something that's just right for you. I'll give it to you tonight." The youth nodded in understanding.

"Ah..." he remembered something he had to ask her "What's your name?" the girl hesitated for a bit, standing motionless, then extended her hand for him to shake. "Enomoto Rinne."

"I'm Asakura Tetsuo." he said, smiling as he shook her hand "Thank you for your help. Also, thank you for saving me, last night..."

"There's no need..." she replied. "I'm sure you understand that in this dark underworld, our own lives are at stake, Asakura-kun."

"I do, Enomoto-san." he replied "I might have very well died last night, if it weren't for you..."

"Make sure you're ready for what lies ahead." the girl warned "I'll see you tonight." Tetsuo nodded in agreement.

"Tonight it is, then." he said, and then the two youths went their separate ways. As he walked away, heading home, Tetsuo glanced at his portable computer, knowing that the night he saw that demon, and the girl who had saved him from it, was the day his normal everyday life ended, the day he was thrust into an underworld of darkness…

...The underworld of demons.

And that his computer would have been his main weapon, in such a world.


	4. 4th Night: First Hunt

4th Night: First Hunt

Tetsuo headed out of the park, in the direction of his home. The words given to him by Rinne Enomoto kept echoing inside his mind, as he glanced at his portable computer while walking more than once.

" _The Demon Summoning Program..._ " he thought " _Here I am, about to confront myself with truths and fears, made into flesh..._ " He was fully aware of the graveness of what he was about to face. He also knew that he couldn't get his parents or his friends involved. He began taking deep breaths as he walked, intending to act as if nothing had happened. Eventually, he arrived in front of his house, where his parents greeted him with a smile.

"Welcome back, Tetsuo." his father started, with a smile on his face.

"How has your walk been?" his mother asked cheerfully.

"It was fine." Tetsuo replied, peacefully.

"Have you met anyone there?" the woman probed, once more.

"I haven't met anyone I knew there." her son replied, calmly.

"I'm looking forward to hearing more of your day while we have dinner." his father smiled, to which Tetsuo smiled back and nodded, before heading upstairs to his room. Upon entering his door, he took his computer off his arm and linked it to the charger, then placed it on his desk and started the installer passed to him by Rinne Enomoto.

" _It'll take an hour to install..._ " he thought, noticing the roughly estimated download time on the screen, standing close to his computer in order to check. In a few minutes, his mother called from downstairs.

"Tetsuo! Dinner's ready!"

"I'm coming, mom!" the youth replied, heading downstairs, where both his parents were sitting at the table, waiting for him. As he sat with them, the family began their dinner.

"So, how did it go today, at school?" Soichiro asked his son.

"It went fine." Tetsuo replied "I've joined the Newspaper Club. Tomorrow will be my first day in there."

"Awesome!" his mother cheered, happily. His father had a smile on his face as well.

"Take your time in getting to know the place." he suggested "Trust me, you'll need it."

"Thank you, dad." the youth nodded, the same smile visible on his own features "I will."

"How did it go at work, darling?" Soichiro's wife asked him.

"It's going just fine, honey." the man replied "We're talking with a man who's interested in our products and is willing to produce applications for them."

"Are you discussing the workings and settings of Mirai's tech with him?" Tetsuo intervened, interested in the conversation.

"Precisely." his father confirmed.

"I wonder what kind of applications he's planning to launch..." the youth asked.

"I don't know." Soichiro replied "We haven't tackled the issue yet..." The two looked at each other with expression of slight concern over what the purpose of these apps could be.

Eventually, the dinner came to an end. Tetsuo rose upstairs, headed to his room and checked the download of the Demon Summoning Program on his portable computer, which was almost completed. The youth only had to wait a couple more minutes for the download's completion, then he started the application and checked out its option menu.

" _Hmmm…_ _Some options seem to be locked._ " he noticed " _Maybe these functions should unlock while I use it..._ " He then tied the computer on his arm and went downstairs.

"Mom, Dad, I'll be going for a walk tonight, as well." he said to his parents.

"Again?" his mother couldn't help but ask. His nightly strolls were not an uncommon occurrence, but it wasn't enough to quench the woman's concerns about his son's safety. Knowing this, the youth nodded at her with a reassuring smile.

"Be careful, my boy." his father said, sharing his wife's worries.

"Don't worry, dad. I will." Tetsuo replied, before heading out the door "I'm out!"

"Take care!" both his parents replied. And so, the amber-eyed youth headed to Inokashira Park, where she was to meet with Rinne Enomoto that very night. It didn't take long for him to reach the place, dimly lit by the lights in the cherry trees. Under one of those very trees stood the mysterious girl, waiting for him.

"Asakura-kun." she said, with a serious expression on her features.

"Good evening, Enomoto-san." he replied as he walked closer to her.

"Before we begin, I must make sure that you're ready and willing to walk down this path." the girl said "You should know, by now. Once you begin delving into the world of demons, there will be no turning back." In response, Tetsuo nodded.

"There has been no turning back ever since I've seen those demons." he replied "If this is the only way I have to defend myself and those I care about from demons, I'll take it. And besides, one must know things in order to be able to take the right decisions about them. I'm ready."

"That's what I hoped to hear." the girl replied, and the youth could swear he had seen the corners of her mouth twitching upwards ever so slightly. It only lasted an instant, however, before her usual stoic expression returned. "Now show me." Immediately, Tetsuo opened up his portable computer and started his newly acquired application, then showed the screen to Rinne.

"Looks like the program is ready for use..." the girl observed "Ok, let's start your first hunt." She then pressed some options in her program, extended her arm, and a sheathed katana appeared in her hand. The stunt left Tetsuo's eyes wide in stupor.

"You must be surely wondering how this is possible." Rinne said, as if understanding his feeling, while she handed him the katana "You'll learn very soon." All the youth could do was nod in understanding, take the katana and latch it on his waist. Then, the girl plucked three stones out of her pocket and handed them to him. Tetsuo eyed them confusedly.

"You'll need them." Rinne quickly said. "Now follow me." She then turned around and began heading out of the park, with the astonished amber-eyed youth putting the stones in his own pocket and following her.

"Enomoto-san..." the youth asked the girl "Are there other people with the program, like us?"

"Yes, there are." Rinne replied, with a nod "For what purpose they're using it, there's no way to tell..."

"So that means I'll have to be careful with other people who have the program..." Tetsuo observed.

"Yes, Asakura-kun." Rinne replied "At least, make an effort to figure out their reason for using the program." In response, he nodded in agreement. As the two youths talked, their steps led them to an area which was eerily quiet in the night.

"In this area is quite easy to find demons." Rinne began "Here, you will learn to use the Demon Summoning Program. The first thing you'll need to learn is how to interact with demons." Tetsuo nodded in understanding, and a question rose in his mind.

"Is it easy to find demons in here?" he asked.

"Yes." the girl confirmed, with a nod "I've been here many times myself. I find this is an excellent training ground. Here, you will gain your first demons and learn about the functionalities of the program." Tetsuo listened to her attentively. "First, you'll have to find a demon, then you'll have to talk to it and convince it to join you. Most times, it'll ask you for something in exchange for accepting to serve you." At those words, a realization dawned on the mind of the amber-eyed youth.

"So that's what those stones were for!" he exclaimed, to which the girl nodded in confirmation.

"Those aren't common stones." she explained "Those are Life Stones. They are normally used to heal your demons, but you'll find yourself using them as negotiation material many, many times." Hearing those words, Tetsuo plucked from his pocket one of the stones the girl had given him and eyed him with stupefied eyes.

"So it looks like they're pretty requested among demons..." he mused. As he finished speaking, he seemed to notice something in the corner of his eye. He immediately turned his gaze and noticed a shadow, different from a human shadow. Upon turning to see what that shadow belonged to, he saw a demon which looked as imposing as a statue. It stood tall, like a human, its feet were clogs, and it had clogs instead of hands as well. It had two horse heads, each with a single horn, and two minuscule wings. Tetsuo was surprised and intimidated by the being, but nonetheless gulped and stepped towards it, throwing some glances at the stones in his hand from time to time. Eventually, the demon laid its eyes on the youth.

"Human..." it spoke "I have never seen the likes of thee in this place. Why art thou here?" Tetsuo gulped once more, then he took a breath and managed to find the words to reply, while looking at the creature calmly.

"I don't know. I'm here to figure that out."

"Thou canst see me..." the demon observed "Art thou a child, lost in the deep, dark forest?"

"Yes, that's how one could put it." Tetsuo replied earnestly, with a nod.

"Would it not be easier to turn thine back and walk away, out of the forest?" the creature inquired.

"Not when I'm lost." the amber-eyed youth replied "I'm already too deep inside the forest to see where it begins and where it ends. The only choice I have is to keep moving forward, in the hopes of finding something that might help me find my way." The being's two heads slightly lifted in amusement, which was shown by a slight wagging of its tail.

"Thou knowest the predicament thou art in." it observed "Thou showeth honesty, and art quite brave, for thine age." In response, Tetsuo shook his head.

"I'm just trying to understand what I'm seeing now, this world in which I'm in..." he replied.

"Hmmm..." the demon then posed another, more tricky question to the human in front of it. "Answer me this. If I were to command thee to die, on this instant, what would thine reply be?" The question surprised Tetsuo, whose eyes widened. He then pensively put his fingers under his chin, thinking of the best words in which he could put the answer. Then, when it came to him, he replied.

"I wouldn't do as you tell. You can't just ask humans to die."

"And why is that?" the creature kept asking "Cannot a human put an end to his own life with his own hands?" Having thought about it, Tetsuo was prepared, and explained himself.

"Yes, they can, but they do so only if they don't see anything to live for in front of them and feel that they'll never find it. In other words, they would do it only if they, in their despair, saw themselves as already dead..." The demon stood silent, making the youth tense up, which he tried his best not to show. Finally, it let out a laugh, surprising him.

"Such an answer was exactly what I hath expected from thee." it spoke, then, the amusement in his voice gave way to a more serious tone "But, I think this is enough idle chatting. Thou wisheth to have me by thine side, dost thou not?" Tetsuo, not knowing how he should consider that question, hesitantly nodded.

"Thou art an interesting son of man, indeed." the demon continued "But, thou must learn, the services of a demon are never given away for free. I have demands of my own. Wilt thou hear them?" Once again, the youth nodded.

"I demand a Life Stone from thee, in exchange for my services." the creature said, extending his clogged arm. The youth, knowing that he had just what he wanted, hid one of his stones under his sleeve, and handed the other two, putting them on the clog. "One for each of your heads." he said. Once more, the demon laughed and its tail wagged in amusement.

"Wishest thou to impress me?" it spoke "Thine liberality is much appreciated, but beware, it might lead thee to ruin if thou trieth it on unworthy beings." Finally, it made another, final request.

"State thine name, son of man."

"My name is Asakura Tetsuo." the amber-eyed youth obliged.

"Very well, Tetsuo." the demon spoke, bowing courtly in submission "I am Centaur. From now on, I shall fight by thine side." Then, a notification sound came from Tetsuo's portable computer. Checking the program, the youth noticed that all necessary information about the demon had been registered.

"Wow..." he uttered in surprise. From what he could see, Centaur could fight with ice magic and needle bullets.

"Excellent job, Asakura-kun!" Rinne called, with her slight smile, catching his attention, then, her expression returned stoic as she gave more explanations. "Remember: different demons will ask different questions. You must be prepared for unpredictable twists as well when talking with demons, keep that in mind." Tetsuo nodded in understanding. "Different demons also mean different societies, coexisting in this underworld." Finally, she drew her twin knives "Now, the next thing you'll need to learn is to fight in this world. The blade I've given you is not enough, by itself. You need demons by your side, to support you in battle. Once you'll be fighting, you'll know what I mean." She then turned and used her program to summon her Karasu Tengu next to her.

"What do you need of me, Rinne?" the flying creature asked.

"We have a new user of the program." the girl replied. "I'm helping him out with learning how it works." The black creature glanced at the amber-eyed youth and the statuesque demon standing beside him.

"He's already gained a demon, I see." it mused.

"Yes." the girl confirmed "Now it's time to move to the next step: battle."

"So there are dangerous demons in this place, too?" Tetsuo couldn't help but ask, with some concern in his voice.

"Dangerous?" Karasu Tengu exclaimed, with a snort, and failed to hold back its chuckle while Rinne shook her head.

"The demons we're going to fight are very numerous, but not really dangerous." she explained "Perfect for battle training." With that, the two hunters walked towards an abandoned building along with their demons. Once they were close enough to the building, they could see that some strange slime was moving, behind the open entrance. Eventually, the slime rose and took indefinite forms, only held together by very scarce amounts of bone, with only one glowing red eye. These multiple forms began to slowly move out of the building.

"Those demons are what you were talking about?" Tetsuo asked, feeling slightly relieved, since he had been expecting something worse.

"Yes." Rinne replied, with a nod "These Slimes will be your targets. Use your katana and your demon to fend them off." While the Slimes kept moving out of the building, the amber-eyed youth quickly drew his katana, as his Centaur prepared itself to attack.

"At thine order, Tetsuo." it spoke. When a group of Slimes moved close enough to them, Tetsuo immediately slashed at one of with his katana. As the creature dissolved, green dust sprung from its remains and flew into his portable computer, as well as into his demon.

" _This dust.._." he couldn't help but think "I _'ve seen it before, when Enomoto-san defeated that demon..._ " There wasn't too much time to think, however. Another Slime lunged at him, but he was ready to meet it with a second slash.

"Now!" he shouted, and Centaur conjured a sphere of cold magic between his heads and fired it to two Slimes, instantly freezing them. The youth and his statuesque demon continued fending off the rather weak creatures together, while Rinne and her winged demon mowed down Slimes as well, respectively with her knives and its wind attacks.

"Ahhh! Someone help me!" Suddenly, a frightened female voice reached the amber-eyed youth's ears, whose eyes widened in stupor.

" _Someone's in trouble!_ " it thought.

"Centaur! We're moving in!" he called his demon, and entered the building without hesitation, followed by the statuesque being fighting by his side. Rinne and Karasu Tengu followed suit. As they got deeper in the building, the Slimes became more numerous, and it became harder for Tetsuo to fend them off with the slashes of his katana alone. That was where his demon came into play, firing balls of cold against them. Rinne and her demon watched as the newbie under her care showed a remarkable prowess in managing his demon in battle. At a certain point, however, a great number of Slimes was on their way.

"Leave this to me, Tetsuo." Centaur said, and his chest opened up in various points, from which needles sprung, ready to be fired against the slimy beings. The statuesque creature immediately shot the needles against the platoon of slimes, dissolving each and every one of them instantly. Tetsuo was left speechless by the demon's deed.

"Great job, Centaur!" he exclaimed "Thanks for the help!"

"Glad I could be of service." the demon replied, then, both it and its master noticed an item on the floor, which had most likely been dropped by one of the Slimes defeated by the needle attack. It was a crystal orb, fairly reminiscent of crystal balls used by sorcerers and shamans to predict the future.

"Thou shouldst take it." Centaur suggested "It is a Bead. Its energy makes every wound vanish from the demon who uses it." Tetsuo nodded and took the object before moving further in. What he and his demon found was a fairy dressed in a blue dress and matching leggings, heavily wounded and intent on evading the lunges of Slimes that were attacking her.

"Leave her alone!" Tetsuo immediately shouted, his eyes narrowed, making the Slimes and the fairy turn to him.

"A human's here?" she couldn't help but exclaim "And he can see me?!" The slimes immediately turned their lunges against Tetsuo and Centaur, only to be met by the former's Katana and the latter's spheres of ice. The demon and his master were quick to dispatch them, before rushing to the fairy's aid, followed by Rinne and Karasu Tengu.

"You've come to save me?" she asked.

"Yes. I've heard you crying out for help and I couldn't help but come here!" Tetsuo earnestly replied, making the fairy blush.

"Th-Thank you..." she replied.

"Canst thou move?" Centaur inquired.

"Not really..." she replied "Those stupid Slimes really did a number on me..." It was then that Tetsuo and his demon noticed that her wings were clipped, most likely because of the Slimes' attack.

"Tetsuo." Centaur called his master.

"Right." the youth replied, with a nod, and then flashed a warm smile at the fairy while picking up the Bead he had found before from his pocket and handing it to her. "Here, this will help you." The fairy quickly took the orb in her hands and it dissolved as her wounds rapidly healed and her wings were completely repaired. She smiled happily in seeing that she could fly again, and quickly flew to Tetsuo's face, hugging it and causing him to blush.

"Thank you, human!" she said "Thank you so much!"

"I-It's a pleasure for me..." he embarrassedly replied, eliciting a chuckle from her. Eventually, she pulled away and looked at him with shining eyes.

"Please, let me return you the favor, my hero!" she said, her hands clutching one another "My name is Pixie, and I'll follow you wherever you'll go!"

"Well, nice to meet you, Pixie-san!" Tetsuo replied "My name is Asakura Tetsuo. I'm glad to know I can count on you."

" _Impressive._ " Rinne thought while watching them, her ghost of a smile sitting on her features " _You rushed in to rescue someone, found a demon in trouble, and saved it, then it joined you willingly..._ "

"Thou art quite jolly, for a being of this dark underworld..." Centaur observed.

"And you look like an old, rusty statue." Pixie retorted "What are you doing with a handsome human like Tetsuo?" The youth blushed, while the statuesque demon felt offended.

"Thou, impudent little critter!" it said, while the fairy stuck out her tongue.

"Calm down, both of you!" Tetsuo called both of his demons, who immediately ceased their banter. Then, Rinne walked closer to him.

"Well done, Asakura-kun." she congratulated him. "You've shown a good prowess with the Demon Summoning Program, so far." Then, her expression returned stoic as she continued. "Now it's time for you to learn about another function: demon fusion."

"Demon Fusion?" Tetsuo couldn't help but exclaim "So you can fuse demons?"

"Exactly." the girl confirmed "You can merge two different demons through fusion to create a more powerful demon." The amber-eyed youth listened to her with wide eyes, stupor sitting on his features "This is a process that requires magnetite."

"Magnetite?" Tetsuo asked, confused.

"You'll learn about it soon enough." Rinne said, understanding her fellow hunter's concerns "For now, just know that you have more than enough to fuse the two demons you have with you." Tetsuo turned back towards its demons, who, in turn, looked back at him

"Dost thou intend to fuse us, Tetsuo?" Centaur asked.

"I've already joined a human, and I'm about to being fused already?!" Pixie said in a disappointed tone, puffing her cheeks.

"O-Only if you're uncomfortable with it, Pixie-san..." Tetsuo replied. At that, her features softened.

"I'm only doing it for you, my hero." she said.

"If thou wishest to fuse us, then so be it." Centaur gave its approval as well.

"Ok. Thank you." he earnestly said. Then, he began handling the menu of the program, eventually managing to set up the fusion. When it started, the two demons became enveloped by shining rays of aura, and then joined together to form a new demon, in an explosion of light which forced Tetsuo and Rinne to cover their eyes. When the light subsided and Tetsuo was able to open his eyes again, he saw an alluring woman with long blonde hair and white feathered wings. She was blindfolded and her body was covered in black bandages. A choker with a severed chain was around her neck.

"Nice to meet you, my dear human." she said to her gobsmacked master, in a gentle, angelic voice "I am Angel. Use me as you wish."

"N-Nice to meet you as well, Angel-san." Tetsuo recovered himself from his stupor enough to be able to reply to her "My name is-"

"You don't need to tell me your name, Tetsuo." the creature interrupted him "I was born from the fusion of demons who knew it, thus, I know it, as well."

"Oh, I see..." he replied, then he smiled warmly at her. "I'm glad to know I can count on you, Angel-san!" His earnest statement earned him a chuckle from his new demon.

"Good job, Asakura-kun." Rinne said, with her usual stoic expression "Now you know the basics of the Demon Summoning Program. I must say, this was really not bad for a first hunt." Immediately, Tetsuo turned to her with a smile.

"If it wasn't for you, I would have never learned to use it." he said. "Thank you, Enomoto-san."

"There's no need to thank me." she replied in a stoic tone, her emotion betrayed only by a slight blush on her cheeks "You're a Hunter like me, now. I have the duty to help all those who are now part of this world." Tetsuo nodded in understanding.


	5. 5th Night: First Day

5th Night: First Day

After their hunt for Slimes, Tetsuo and Rinne were outside the abandoned building, with their demons by their sides.

"You're learning fast, Asakura-kun." Rinne couldn't help but remark.

"Thank you, Enomoto-san." he replied, with a slight bow. "Again, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be learning at all..." At that, Rinne looked away for a moment, in slight embarrassment, before looking back at him with her usual serious expression. Angel couldn't help but chuckle out of amusement.

"You should know that when you fuse demons, the result always has the combined powers of the demons used for fusion." she explained "In the case of your Angel, the powers of Centaur and Pixie could combine easily, but when the powers of the demons you use are more complex, the combination is yours to decide." after Tetsuo showed his understanding with a nod, the girl then typed something on her portable computer. In mere seconds, a sound of notification came from the amber-eyed youth's own computer. He checked it and noticed that there was a chatroom in which he could talk with Rinne. The only message in the chatroom was from the mysterious girl.

"Check."

"There's a chat feature in the program?!" Tetsuo couldn't help exclaiming.

"Yes, there is." Rinne replied "This way, Hunters can communicate with one another. Also, S uses it to send messages to us." Tetsuo listened with eyes wide in stupor, taking in the information.

"We demons can talk with you from your device, as well." the youth's Angel added, catching her master's attention "For clear reasons, you will have to keep us in your program for most of the time, but we will still be able to talk with you." Tetsuo listened to her words and nodded in understanding.

"Ok, now it's best for you to return home, Asakura-kun." Rinne recommended "Tomorrow night we'll be doing another hunt."

"Yes." Karasu Tengu added "We'll be going for something a little tougher than those stupid Slimes. But don't you worry, with your Angel, you should be able to handle it."

"Thank you, Tengu-san!" Tetsuo replied, albeit with a little uncertainty, before looking back at the winged demon's master.

"I'll see you tomorrow night, then." she said "Remember to store your katana in the program inventory before heading back. I'll be counting on you."

"Same here. I'll be counting on you, from now on." After hearing this reply from him, Rinne turned her back and walked away. While Tetsuo was heading back to his house as well, after storing his weapon in a sort of digital inventory provided by the Demon Summoning Program, he still dwelled on the events of that night. Now he commanded demons, just like that mysterious girl. She had saved his life, and now she was teaching him what could possibly be the only way to survive in that dark underworld. He found himself wondering who she was, and how she entered the world of demons and gained the knowledge she was now sharing with him. His train of thought was interrupted by a notification sound coming from his portable computer. It was a message in the chat that, much to his surprise, was sent by his demon, Angel.

"What is on your mind, Tetsuo?" he read.

"I'm still trying to wrap my head around what has just happened..." he typed, replying earnestly "I can understand it, but I still find it hard to believe..."

"It is completely normal." Angel replied "No common human would be able to process what you have just seen."

"I guess that my passion for mythos is the only thing that has helped me digesting this..." the youth typed.

"And what do you think of the young woman who is helping you?" his demon asked, perhaps a tad too boldly. The amber-eyed youth couldn't help but blush at the question, and eventually typed back his answer.

"I'm grateful to her, of course. And, I can't help but wonder how she got into all of this..."

"Do not worry." Angel reassured "In due time, you will know everything. Even the true form of what you call "passion"." That ambiguous message left the youth doubtful, but he decided not to ask his demon more about it. Before he knew it, he was in front of the entrance of his house, with his parents waiting for him.

"Tetsuo! Are you all right?" his mother asked, worry clearly audible in her voice. Understanding her feelings, Tetsuo gave her a reassuring hug.

"Don't worry, mom. I'm all right." he answered her question in the meantime.

"Where have you been?" his father inquired.

"Well..." the youth explained "I was walking around. Eventually, my steps led me to the park, where I've met a girl that, oddly enough, I had met this afternoon, as well!"

"So you've been with her for the night?" the man couldn't help but ask.

"Yes." his son replied "We just chatted." Thus, he gave them the answer he was most comfortable with. It wasn't the truth, but it wasn't too far from it, either. However, it still backfired. Soichiro couldn't help but smirk.

"Oh, our boy is growing up so fast..." he said.

"H-H-Hold on! Don't misunderstand, dad!" the youth immediately replied, blushing beet red and waving his hands in front of him nervously "We're just talking, that's all."

"For now." the man insisted, making his son's blush intensify.

"Will you be going out with her again tomorrow?" Soichiro's wife asked. Immediately, Tetsuo looked at his mother, knowing that she is worried about his safety.

"Yes mom, I will." he earnestly replied "Don't worry. I'll be careful." he then added, to reassure her. The woman silently sighed in relief as her son walked in the house, followed by his parents in tow. After saying his goodnights, he headed upstairs to his room and got changed for the night, then he laid in his bed, his portable computer in front of him. On it, he could read another message from Angel.

"You have a very loving family, Tetsuo." The youth couldn't help but smile at the comment as he typed his reply.

"Thank you, Angel-san." however, his expression was filled with concern as he sent another text "I must protect them from all of this..."

"I can understand." he could read the reply from his demon "You wish to fight for those dear to you. Is that correct?"

"Exactly." Tetsuo immediately gave his answer "Now, I see threats that they don't see, and that's why I must protect them from those threats."

"Now you dwell in a world of darkness, devoid of certainty." Angel replied "But you can count on me to protect them. This certainty, I can grant you." The first part of her answer was ambiguous and disheartening, but nonetheless, Tetsuo was relieved in reading those words from her.

"Thank you, Angel." he typed back. It was then that he received a message from a new contact. His eyes widened in reading the ID of the server.

S.

A single letter, which bore a great weight. Knowing that it was none other that the man responsible for the managing and distribution of the Demon Summoning Program, Tetsuo read the message.

"Hello, Tetsuo. Thank you for downloading the Demon Summoning Program. I am not the creator of this program, but I have managed to take possession of it, and now I'm updating it. The program is linked to the device of the user, and that's why I know your name. Please, don't be frightened. This program has most likely been given to you by someone who already possessed it. Demons of legend and myth surround us and live next to us, unseen by many. However, we can counter them and protect ourselves from them. This is the purpose of this program, to use the power of demons against them. I shall give you advice and answer any of your doubts. Please write any questions you have in this chatroom, and I will do my best to answer them. S."

Tetsuo was startled by the fact that this mysterious programmer knew his name, but he put that aside. He began typing his first question for S.

"Greetings, S-san. There are still some questions plaguing my mind at the moment. Now, the most appropriate matter I think I should address is: How are you capable of communicating with us and taking care of the program's maintenance? I've managed to come to terms with this new reality I have been thrown in, and, thanks to the guidance of the person who has given me this program, I'm learning how to use it at its fullest, but I need to know everything about how this came to be, if I wish to really be able to do something about it! Hopefully my questions and your answers will help me in finding the source of this situation. Thank you in advance. Asakura Tetsuo." He sent the message, and then quickly returned to Angel's chatroom.

"Was it S?" his demon asked.

"Yes." Tetsuo replied "I've asked him a question about how he keeps the program up. Of course, I can't expect him to reply right away."

"Indeed." Angel confirmed, then, she advised her master "Now you should get some rest, however. A human cannot bear to stay without sleep..."

"Yes, that's true..." the youth replied.

"Do not worry about your parents, Tetsuo." the demon added, to reassure him. "I can wake you up through this device, should the need ever arise."

"Understood. Thank you for your concern." he replied. "Goodnight, Angel-san."

"Goodnight, Tetsuo." After reading Angel's reply, the fledgling demon hunter turned his portable computer off and put it on the bedside table, then tucked in and drifted off to sleep for the night.

" _A world of uncertainty..._ " he couldn't help but think about Angel's words, however " _Did the human world ever have certainty to begin with? That's the question to which we've always strived to find an answer..._ "

His slumber, however, was to be troubled by his recurring dream.

 _Tetsuo found himself tossed about in the wind, flying above the familiar garden with cherry blossoms._

" _Tetsuo..."_

 _Suddenly, he heard that strong voice again._

" _I can sense you..." it spoke "You're getting closer to me..."_

 _Tetsuo wished to ask who was speaking, but found himself at a loss of words._

" _Soon, you'll be here..." the voice continued "I'll be waiting for you..."_

 _And then, lightning flashed and thunder crackled._

Tetsuo immediately opened his eyes, waking up from that strange dream. The morning sun rays passing through the window touched him as he sat up on his bed, bringing a hand to his head.

" _Why am I having that dream again…?_ " he couldn't help but wonder. But there was not too much time to spare. It was his first day as a member of the Newspaper Club.

" _For now, I need to focus on school and on my new club..._ " he thought as he got off the bed, ready to begin his morning routine. As usual, he saw his mother off at the door of his house and headed towards school. His neighbor Ayumu was there, ready to walk to the bus stop with him.

"Hey there, Tetsuo!" he greeted him warmly, like he had always done.

"Hello, Ayumu!" he greeted back, in kind, and the two walked together.

"Today's your big day in the Newspaper Club!" Ayumu exclaimed excitedly.

"I know!" Tetsuo replied. He couldn't help but smile at the thought.

"Nervous?" the youth asked his amber-eyed friend, with a smirk on his face.

"A bit." he earnestly replied "But I'm also excited!"

"That's the spirit, my man!" Ayumu exclaimed, patting his friend's shoulder as they arrived at the bus stop right on time.

Like the day before, Tetsuo's eyes wandered along the bus, looking for any signs of abnormality. Everything seemed to be tranquil, however. Once the bus reached its destination, the two youths hopped off of it and headed to the school's main gates, where their friends, Hideaki and Izumi, were waiting for them.

"Good morning!" Izumi was the first to greet their two friends.

"Good morning, Hideaki! Murakami-san!" Tetsuo replied in kind, with a smile on his face.

"Yo!" Ayumu grinned as he raised his hand in greeting.

"So, Asakura-kun." the red-haired girl stepped towards her classmate "Today is your first day in the School Newspaper Club, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is." the amber-eyed youth replied.

"Best of luck." her smile broadened as she patted his shoulder.

"Thank you, Murakami-san!" he replied, feeling encouraged by her words.

"Take your time in getting used to the place." Hideaki advised his friend.

"I will, Hideaki." Tetsuo replied. He had been given the same piece of advice before by his father, and was more than willing to put it into practice.

"Oh, and if they don't recognize your ability..." Izumi added, a mischievous smirk creeping up on her face "I have just the right thing that will set them straight..." Knowing what her friend was capable of, the youth braced himself for whatever she had in mind.

"Tetsuo, be careful!" Hideaki warned his friend, who was already tense. Just as he had finished speaking, Izumi pulled out a ball which could open up, as if it had a mouth. It was colored as if it was an unsettling demon face, and a screech could be heard coming from it once it opened. Tetsuo jumped back, even though he was expecting such a stunt from her.

"Say hello to my little friend, Onidama-chan!" she exclaimed in triumph, giggling.

"Izumi..." he sighed. "You're gonna make someone have a heart attack, one day..."

"Oh, come on!" his girlfriend whined "Pulling such pranks not only is fun, it also sits well with the theme of our club!"

"Say, speaking of which..." Ayumu added "Kyoko-chan is the one who gives you all of these horror goods, right?"

"You got that right, Hirabayashi-kun!" Izumi excitedly confirmed "I can't help but wonder where she gets them from… I sure would like to visit it, if it's a shop!"

"Er, guys?" Hideaki reminded everyone "As much as I would like to keep chatting, we still have lessons to go through!" Tetsuo nodded in agreement, while Ayumu scowled.

"Why did you have to remind us?" he whined. As they were speaking, Kyoko Shibusawa watched their banter from a distance, giggling at Izumi's antics and at the reactions of her friends.

The morning lessons went on smoothly. Tetsuo was on guard for any possible demon which could appear at a moment's notice. Fortunately, the classroom seemed to be peaceful as well, and Tetsuo always made an effort to stay on track of the lessons.

Then, lunch break started.

Tetsuo strolled about in the hallways, which were already beginning to fill with life.

"Hello, Tetsuo!" a gentle male voice called him. As the youth turned, he saw his classmate, Kojiro Soma, with a smile on his face.

"Oh, hello, Soma!" he replied, politely, smiling in kind, to which the youth chuckled.

"Please, feel free to use my first name." he said, adjusting his glasses "We'll be colleagues from now on, right?" he then extended his hand for his classmate to shake.

"Thank you, Kojiro." he replied, shaking his hand "I'll be counting on you from now on."

"I'll be glad to be of help to a fellow journalist who shares my passion for mythos." Kojiro added. And so, the two classmates began walking along the hallway together while chatting.

"So, what has brought you to accept our offer?" Kojiro asked.

"Well, I think that old lores are taken too lightly in this day and age." Tetsuo explained "My place in the Newspaper Club will allow me to give my contribution to fixing that. A journalist's job is to unveil truths, after all, and I've got many truths to put into play." His classmate listened to him with genuine interest.

"Well said, Asakura Tetsuo."

The two members of the Newspaper Club immediately turned to the source of the voice that had spoken those words, which turned out to be none other than Kyoko Shibusawa.

"Ah, Shibusawa-san!" Tetsuo exclaimed, surprised to see her.

"What brings you here, Kyoko-chan?" Kojiro asked.

"I was just passing by, when I heard you two talking." Kyoko replied, with a smile on her face. "It's always nice to be in front of people who share our beliefs, isn't it?"

"That's true, Kyoko-chan." Kojiro replied, with a smile. Kyoko, then, moved closer to the amber-eyed youth.

"Did you like the little demon I've presented to your friend?" she asked, still smiling.

"It's unsettling enough." Tetsuo replied, scratching the back of his head "Much like all of the stuff you've given to Murakami-san in the past few months." His answer made the petite girl giggle.

"Well, demons hide under the surface of our world, even in ways that are beyond suspicion." she explained "With my gifts, Izumi shall surely teach you to beware." Tetsuo chuckled, and then let out a sigh.

"If she doesn't overdo it, that is..." he commented. Kyoko took a small marble of dark chocolate from her pocket and unwrapped it, before putting it in her mouth to eat. She found herself pleased with the taste and, after swallowing it, she turned to Kojiro with a bright smile.

"I can see now why you like these so much!" she said.

"They're a favorite in my family!" Kojiro replied, scratching the back of his head.

"I will definitely try them out again!" Kyoko said, before stepping away. Once she was at a certain distance from her fellow students, she turned back to them and waved at them "Bye-bye!"

"Bye-bye!" both waved back at her.

"So those really were Sanshiro's favorite chocolates!" Tetsuo observed, having recognized the marble that Kyoko seemed to be trying for the first time.

"Yep!" Kojiro confirmed, with a nod. The amber-eyed youth had met Sanshiro Soma, Kojiro's little brother, multiple times while hanging out in the arcade with his friend Ayumu.

" _He was always keeping a small stock of those marbles to keep himself energized for games..._ " he thought.

"I think we should head back to class now." Kojiro remarked. His classmate nodded in agreement, and so they settled for heading back to the class. The afternoon classes went on peacefully. As Tetsuo followed them, however, something was bothering him insistently.

" _Shibusawa Kyoko-san… Is she really aware of the existence of demons?_ " he thought " _And if she is, what is she planning to do with her knowledge? In any case, I mustn't betray my possession of the program… Not just with Shibusawa-san, but with anyone..._ "

After the afternoon classes came to an end, club activities for the day started. Tetsuo headed to the Newspaper Club's room. He had been told its location by Kojiro, so he knew where to go. As soon as he opened the door, he found himself showered with confetti.

"Welcome to the club, Tetsuo!" Yousuke Miura, head of the club, cheerfully greeted the new entry, with Saki by his side.

"Wow..." the youth murmured, blushing "When you said it would have been a "party cracker" you weren't lying, Miura..." Yousuke laughed in response.

"No need for such formalities! We're colleagues, now!" he said. "And besides, new members need to be given the warmest welcome possible!"

"Understood, Yousuke." Tetsuo replied, with a nod and a grateful smile. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it, pal!" the head of the Newspaper club replied, with a huge grin on his face, then he turned his gaze to two fellow members: Kojiro Soma and Takehiko Kuki "Given your area of expertise, you'll most likely be working with Kojiro and Takehiko for most of your time here." The amber-eyed youth showed his understanding with a nod, and then sat next to his fellow myth lovers.

"Welcome to the team!" Takehiko exclaimed, tapping his new colleague's shoulder.

"Thank you, Takehiko." Tetsuo replied with a smile.

"With your help, folklore inserts will surely catch more attention." Kojiro added.

"You can count on me!" the amber-eyed youth exclaimed.

"It's just my first day, and yet, it feels like I've been in the club for a lot of time!" he thought, grateful for the warm welcome he had been given. That was the start of his days in the Kichijouji Seijou High Newspaper Club.


	6. 6th Night: Shibuya

6th Night: Shibuya

That afternoon, Tetsuo Asakura had been instructed about the workings of the club he had entered. He and his colleagues, Kojiro Soma and Takehiko Kuki, already had the topic for a new article. In the middle of the night, gaping holes and other kinds of damage were found in the walls of some buildings, and the cause of it is unknown, which left room for speculation.

"Well, that's just your song and dance, isn't it?" Yousuke commented, smiling at the three occult writers.

"Indeed it is." Kojiro smiled back.

"Now it's your time to shine, rookie." Takehiko said, patting his new colleague's shoulder and prompting him to blush slightly.

"Very well." the head of the club concluded, with a grin "We'll see some action next week!"

"I won't let you down." Tetsuo said, determinedly, yet with a hint of anxiety in his voice, to which his fellow members of the Newspaper Club smiled.

"I know you won't." Yousuke replied, with a reassuring and trusting tone.

"If you're uncertain about anything, you can always ask us." Kojiro added, before sheepishly scratching the back of his head "Just, don't rely on me too much for tech-related issues..." The statement elicited laughter from everyone else in the room.

"Don't worry about that, Kojiro." the amber-eyed youth replied "I'm good."

Eventually, the meeting reached its end. The club members called it a day and settled to head back to their homes. Tetsuo went down the stairs and headed to the gates of the school, where his friends were waiting for him.

"Hey there, Tetsuo!" Ayumu cheerily called.

"So, how did it go?" Hideaki asked.

"Rather well." Tetsuo eagerly replied "The staff was really welcoming, and we already have a job."

"What are you going to write about?" Ayumu probed, with rising excitement in his voice.

"Mysterious holes made in the walls during the night." the amber-eyed youth.

"I've heard about that case." the head of the Occult Club remarked. "We're actually planning to talk about it during one of our meetings.

"That's amazing for a first work, Asakura-kun!" Izumi exclaimed.

"I just hope it turns out well." Tetsuo replied, scratching the back of his head.

"You have the contacts of your colleagues, right?" Hideaki asked, adjusting his glasses.

"Of course!" the amber-eyed writer replied "Why is that?"

"Well, if you're uncertain about information collecting or other issues, you'll still be able to contact them." Hideaki smiled.

"See?" Izumi added, smiling brightly as well "You're pretty much set!"

"And I would say you're pretty much ready to rock the club now!" Ayumu added, with a huge grin, patting his friend's shoulder and making him blush.

"Thank you, guys." Tetsuo said, gratefully, a smile gracing his own features.

"Hey, that's what friends are for, isn't it?" his neighbor and friend replied.

"Well then, see you tomorrow." Hideaki said, ready to accompany Izumi home before heading to his own house.

"See you!" Tetsuo replied, before heading back to his neighborhood with Ayumu. The two hopped on the bus, chatted along their way until they reached their stop, and finally walked to their houses, waving each other goodbye with the promise of seeing each other the next day.

"Mom? Dad? I'm back!" Tetsuo called upon entering his home, in which he knew both of his parents were waiting for him.

"Tetsuo!" the youth's mother immediately greeted her son "Welcome home!"

"How was your day?" his father asked.

"Be patient, darling." she said "Dinner will be ready soon, and then he'll have all the time to tell us!"

"Well, it's been an important day for him, if I remember..." Soichiro remarked, looking at his son with a smirk.

"Yes." Tetsuo nodded "Today's been my first day in the Newspaper Club!" The statement elicited laughter in everyone.

After that pleasant exchange, the amber-eyed youth went up the stairs and entered his room, then sat on his bed and opened up his portable computer, booting up his Demon Summoning Program. He noticed that he already had some unread messages. Firstly, he read the ones sent from his demon.

"Your friends are nice, as well." Angel had said "I am also impressed to see that some people seem to believe in demons as well…"

"Well, such things can always fascinate..." Tetsuo typed back, with a smile.

"I cannot help but find it amusing, for humans to be fascinated by demons..." he then read, as a reply from the winged woman.

"I think I understand what you're trying to get to..." he replied "Such fascination could lead to danger, especially in the world I'm living in now..." It was then that an important question surfaced in his mind "Speaking of which, have you noticed anything strange while I carried you in my computer?"

"I have seen something in one of your friends." Angel said "Shibusawa Kyoko. She appears to be uncommon."

"What kind of uncommon are you talking about?" Tetsuo asked, with worry beginning to seep inside him "Is it my kind of uncommon?"

"Yes, it is." the winged woman replied. The words weighed like stone pillars as the amber-eyed hunter read them.

" _I was right!_ " he thought " _She can see demons, too!_ " His feelings over the matter were conflicting. On one side, he felt relieved to have found someone else that shared his peculiar situation. However, there was still one problem: What if her intentions were foul? The mysterious girl who was mentoring him had warned him about the chance to encounter ill-willed hunters.

"How do you think I should act around her, for now?" he asked to his demon.

"I am sorry, Tetsuo. I do not have enough information to answer." Angel replied "For the time being, the best course of action would be to refer this to your fellow and listen to what she says."

"Agreed." Tetsuo typed back "Thank you, Angel-san."

"It is merely my duty, my dear human." the winged woman replied. The amber-eyed youth smiled and, with that matter settled, decided to check the other chatrooms in which he had unread messages. First, he looked at Rinne Enomoto's chat log.

"Have you gotten used to your new life, yet?" the most recent message said "I'll try to help you to the best of my abilities whenever you'll need it. If you notice something unusual, tell me. Don't forget to meet me in Inokashira Park tonight, and know that our hunt will lead us deeper in Tokyo this time."

"Understood." Tetsuo replied to the message "I haven't forgotten about that. Thank you for helping me out. I don't know how many times I'm gonna say it, but I don't know where I would be right now if it wasn't for you… I actually have something to tell you, when we'll meet." Then, he checked his last chatroom. There was a reply from S to the question he had asked him the previous night.

"Hello, Tetsuo. Thank you for your message. To answer your question, I have found voices about a program that allowed to summon demons. Usually such voices are hardly reliable, but I still decided to follow that lead, and that's how I found the program. Then, I developed a port for your device and began distributing it. Of course, this didn't go unnoticed to the company which manufactures the portable computers, so I'm currently in the business of explaining the situation to them. I hope this answers your question. Best of luck on your future endeavors."

The content of that message made Tetsuo's mind work and recall the words of his father about a man who was speaking about applications for portable computers, ultimately leading him to a shocking realization.

" _Does that mean that S-_ _san_ _is the man who is currently speaking with my father?_ " he thought, with eyes wide in stupor. He gave it some thought, and then decided to reply to S, and then discreetly ask his father about the identity of his mysterious client.

"Greetings, S-san. Thank you for your reply. Yes, this does answer my question. I'll write to you again when I'll have another important issue to bring up."

"Tetsuo? Dinner's ready!" Just as he had finished typing, his mother called from downstairs.

"Coming, mom!" the youth immediately replied, closed his portable computer and headed out of his room and down the stairs to join his parents for dinner.

"So, how was your first day in the Newspaper Club?" Soichiro asked his son.

"It was really nice." Tetsuo replied "The staff gave me such a warm welcome!"

"That's lovely to hear!" the youth's mother exclaimed, before asking a question of her own "Did they give you any assignments?"

"Well, yes." he replied "We have an article to work on."

"We?" his father couldn't help but ask.

"Yes." the amber-eyed youth explained "I work with two fellow myth lovers."

"Oh, well, isn't that the perfect place for you!" Soichiro remarked, eliciting laughter in everyone sitting at the table.

"And what about you, honey?" his wife asked, once the laughter quieted down.

"Work has been fine today." the man replied.

"Are you still discussing with that application producer you mentioned yesterday?" Tetsuo asked.

"Yes, I am." his father replied "Why do you ask?"

"Just had to ask." the amber-eyed youth said, his words hiding the question that was truly lurking in his mind.

" _That producer might very well be S-san._ " he thought " _Covered by a disguise, or not..._ " He decided not to probe in further, in order not to raise suspicions and worries in his parents.

Eventually, the dinner came to an end, and, after retrieving his portable computer, Tetsuo headed towards the door of his house.

"Are you going to meet your new friend?" Soichiro asked.

"Yes, I am." his son replied, with a nod.

"Please, be careful..." the youth's mother said, her voice filled with worry.

"Don't worry, mom." Tetsuo smiled reassuringly at her "I will." He then stepped out of the house "I'm off."

"Take care!" both of his parents said while he walked away, heading to Inokashira Park, where he was set to meet Rinne Enomoto.

He had already walked a stretch, and was already out of his neighborhood, when something strange caught his eye. It was a slim, agile-looking blue cat, wearing a typical Japanese Kasa.

" _That cat..._ " he couldn't help but think " _Something doesn't feel normal about it..._ " Upon a more careful hearing, the youth could notice that the cat was humming, much like a human, as it was walking.

" _Yep, it's a demon._ " he concluded. He then decided to call its attention.

"Hey there!" he called, prompting the cat demon to turn its gaze towards the human.

"You can see me!" it exclaimed, to which the young hunter merely chuckled, scratching the back of his head.

"But..." the cat said, prompting Tetsuo to look at it, and notice that it was winking "Can you catch me?" It then began running away from him. Immediately, the youth sprinted and caught up to him in a short amount of time. As soon as they reached a tree, Tetsuo put a hand in front of the cat, impeding it from climbing up.

"Aww, you caught me!" the cat whined.

"Hey, you wanted to play." the amber-eyed hunter retorted, putting his hands on his hips as he panted. Then, he put a hand in his pocket. "Speaking of play..."

"Huh?" the cat looked at him with an interested gaze. Then, its eyes began sparkling as the youth plucked a Life Stone from his pocket.

"Do you want to play with this?" he asked, to which the cat nodded, before pouncing on the stone. However, Tetsuo was quick enough to move it away from its grasp, and kept playing around with the cat demon for some seconds, before tossing away the stone, so that it could easily grab it. "Here, take it!"

"Yay!" the cat immediately lunged towards the stone and grabbed it right before it could touch the ground, and then began playing with it.

"Liking it?" Tetsuo asked, crouching to the happy demon's level.

"I love it!" the cat immediately replied "You're the funniest human I've ever met! What's your name?"

"Name's Asakura Tetsuo." the youth smiled.

"I'm Kabuso." the cat replied, with a smile of its own "It's nice to bump into you!" The youth chuckled in response, and then used his Demon Summoning Program to call Angel out of his portable computer. "Angel-san, here's your new friend, Kabuso."

"It is nice to meet you, little one!" the winged woman warmly greeted the cat demon.

"Nice to meet you, bird lady!" it replied, grinning. The amber-eyed youth looked at his demon, worried about her reaction to that name. However, Angel's warm smile did not change. He inwardly sighed in relief, and decided to let it slide.

"So, shall we go?" he asked.

"Sure." Angel replied.

"If there are any nice thingies around, I'll catch them for you!" Kabuso said "Gotta make myself useful."

"Thank you, Kabuso." the young hunter smiled "It's much appreciated." The cat grinned in response. Then, Tetsuo took out his sheathed katana from his inventory and began heading to the park. Along the way, Kabuso found various objects for him, which were added to the young hunter's inventory.

Eventually, the amber-eyed youth reached Inokashira Park, where he found Rinne Enomoto waiting for him, under the leaves of a tree.

"Sorry I'm late, Enomoto-san." he said as he walked to her, with his demons by his side "As you can see, I've gained another demon."

"A Kabuso..." the girl looked at the demon, then at its master "Good job. Has it helped you?"

"Well, I can't do much when it comes to fighting..." Kabuso said "But I can find nice thingies!"

"It helped me finding many items on my way here, and they look pretty useful..." Tetsuo added.

"Excellent." Rinne replied, before walking away from the tree "Let's get going, then."

"Where are we going?" the amber-eyed youth asked as he followed her.

"In Shibuya." the girl replied "There's a demon who likes to play with the screens of the city, making them go static."

"Static screens?" Tetsuo exclaimed "I had heard about the screens of Tokyo going static at a given hour in the night..."

"You did?" Rinne asked, inquisitively raising a brow.

"Yes, we tackled the issue in the Occult Club of my school, of which I'm a member." he explained "So it was a demon's doing..."

"Exactly." the mysterious girl replied "And we're going to hunt down that demon tonight." She then opened up her portable computer and summoned her own demons. This time, besides the well known Karasu Tengu, two more demons appeared by her side: A being with the body of a lion, and with the head, front legs and wings of an eagle, and a great, fiery, bright red peacock. "Asakura-kun, you already know Karasu Tengu. Now, let me introduce you to Gryphon and Suzaku."

"Gryphon, Suzaku, this is Asakura Tetsuo, a fellow hunter of Rinne's." Karasu Tengu added "He's a rookie, but he's got guts." In response, both the demons cried out, greeting him. "It's just their way to say "hi"." the black winged demon added.

"Well, nice to meet both of you." the impressed youth replied.

"It's essential to have more than one demon with you." Rinne said "You might find even more demons in Shibuya, so stay alert." Tetsuo nodded in response. It was then that he recalled something that he had to ask.

"Enomoto-san..." he asked "Last night, you mentioned something called "magnetite". What is it, exactly?"

"Magnetite is a substance to which demons owe their sustainment in our world." the girl explained "Human bodies are the richest source of this mineral, since they produce it. The rate of production is influenced by the human's state of mind and beliefs. Long story short, it's our life force." The amber-eyed youth's eyes widened in shock as he heard his fellow hunter's words.

"Does that mean I've used my own life force to fuse Centaur and Pixie into Angel-san, last night?" he asked. All the demons laughed upon hearing that statement, as Rinne shook her head.

"Not at all." she said "It's true, we need magnetite to summon and fuse demons, but we retrieve it from the decaying corpses of the demons we slay." At those words, the youth couldn't help but recall the flying, glowing little stones that came out of the corpses of that Oni, and of the Slimes.

" _So that was Magnetite..._ " he thought.

"Not only that." Kabuso added "It's because of magnetite that you can see us! You produce fantastic amounts of magnetite!"

"So that's how you were able to see that Shibusawa-san was able to see demons..." Tetsuo realized.

"Yes." Angel confirmed "I saw the shifts of her magnetite production rate."

"Come again?" Rinne asked, wanting to hear about the person that the young man under her wing had mentioned.

"Oh, right!" the rookie hunter exclaimed, before explaining the situation to the girl "A schoolmate of mine, Shibusawa Kyoko-san, can see demons as well, according to Angel-san. However, I'm still in the dark about what she wants to do about that ability..."

"Then keep an eye on her, and figure it out." Rinne immediately replied "Until you're sure of her intentions, don't say a word about your ability." In response, Tetsuo nodded, showing his understanding. With the matter settled, the two hunters and their demons discreetly continued their journey to Shibuya. Suddenly, Kabuso jumped on the shoulder of his master as he walked, making him yelp slightly.

"Your fellow..." it whispered in his ear "She's cute, isn't she?" The bold question instantly made Tetsuo blush brightly, as Angel let out a giggle at the scene.

Eventually, the two youths found the area they were looking for. The screens were still operational, projecting captivating images which were meant to catch the passer-by's eye and advertise a great variety of products. They also found some more fairy-type demons, hovering around the area, and noticed that they were eagerly looking at the screens. Tetsuo decided to get closer to one of them, and noticed that her body was filled with colors.

"Ah!" the fairy immediately turned to him, upon realizing that he was looking at her "A human? What are you doing here?" she asked, showing surprise at the sight of a human in Shibuya in that nightly hour. Eventually, a smile sprung on her face as she came to a realization of her own "Ahhh, you like to look at these shining screens, too?"

"You could say that." the youth replied, with a smile of his own "Everyone likes to look at them."

"Can see why!" the fairy replied "They're filled with such beautiful colors!"

"Well..." the young hunter replied, wanting to add a piece of information of his own "There's also the fact that they advertise products that we humans love."

"No way, really?" the fairy asked, looking at him with wide eyes. Rinne and her demons were a few steps away from them, watching them.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to wait here?" Karasu Tengu asked his mistress.

"Yes. We have to wait for the demon to come out." the girl replied "In the meantime, he's free to… No, he has to try and negotiate with some more demons."

"See that screen, for example?" Tetsuo explained, pointing at one of the many screens in the area, which advertised Coca-Cola "It advertises a beverage that is well loved among humans."

"Wow..." she looked at the screen with sparkling eyes "Now I'm wanting to drink it..."

"Ummm..." the youth uncertainly turned to the fairy once more "You sure you can drink it? It's a fizzy drink, you know?" To that, the fairy giggled.

"Sure I can drink it, silly!" she replied "I can drink whatever I want! Well, except for beer, I hate that one..."

"I saw a demon that sucked a whole bottle of beer dry after snatching it from a human..." Tetsuo said, recalling his first episode involving a demonic presence "But it was bigger and burlier than you, so..."

"Well, let the big ones drink that stuff! I'm fine with my own!" the fairy's statement elicited laughter in both of the talkers. Eventually, the fairy smiled warmly at him.

"You're funny, for a human, you know that?" she observed "So much that I would gladly come with you~" Then, she gave a nostalgic gaze to the screens she knew and loved "But… I won't be able to see these beautiful colors anymore if I come with you..." Tetsuo heard her words, and immediately had an idea.

"I have just the right thing for you." he exclaimed "Something that'll make you see many colors!"

"Wow, really?" the fairy asked, surprised and excited.

"Yes!" the youth replied "Your own colors! You're filled with colors, after all…" His words made the fairy giggle sweetly.

"Why, you charmer~" she replied.

"Are you planning to give her that mirror I've found?" Kabuso asked, guessing the object his master planned to give away.

"Exactly." Tetsuo replied, before taking a small, magical mirror from his cyber-inventory and giving it to the fairy as a gift.

"Wow..." she held the mirror in her hands, looking at herself with stupor, then she looked at the human with sparkling eyes, put the mirror away and lunged at his face, hugging it "Thank you so much!"

"Hehe, y-you're welcome..." Tetsuo replied, a bright blush sitting on his features, while Angel failed to hold back a giggle.

"What's your name, human?" the fairy asked, after pulling away from the embrace.

"My name's Asakura Tetsuo." the amber-eyed youth replied.

"Well, my name's Napaea, and I'm coming with you!" the fairy demon exclaimed, cheerfully, before winking at him "Don't underestimate me just because I'm little! I'm actually pretty strong, y'know?"

"Thank you, Napaea-san." Tetsuo smiled at his new demon "I'll be counting on you, from now on." Napaea nodded excitedly.

"Excellent job, Asakura-kun." Rinne remarked, with her ghost of a smile sitting on her features.

"I know that little critter." Karasu Tengu added "She may look like she wouldn't hurt a fly, but let me tell you, she can be a real thug."

"Mhm! Yep yep yep!" Napaea confirmed, nodding repeatedly once more "So, where are we going now?"

It was then that, suddenly, all the screens in the area turned static, in an eerie twist, of which the meaning was well known to the two hunters.

It was time to act.


	7. 7th Night: Static Screens

7th Night: Static Screens

All the screens surrounding Rinne Enomoto and Tetsuo Asakura had suddenly gone static. The hunters knew, it was their cue to begin the hunt.

"What's happening to the colorful screens?" Napaea asked, clearly disoriented by the situation.

"A demon's tampering with them." Tetsuo quickly replied.

"And we are endeavoring to find and defeat this demon." Angel added.

"Let me join you, then." the little fairy quickly replied, clenching her fist in determination and anger "No one touches those screens!"

"Rinne! I can see something!" Karasu Tengu called "On top of that palace!" Immediately, both the mysterious girl and her companion looked at the direction indicated by the demon, and saw the silhouette of a winged man perched up on top of the palace. Its head seemed to be bigger than a normal human head.

"We're going up there, then." Rinne resolutely said, before barging towards the palace, followed by her demons and her fellow hunter. As soon as they set foot in the tall building, they saw demons all around them. There were small figures with a head shaped like a crescent moon, holding bags, and little girls with raven-black wings for hair.

"We're surrounded!" the amber-eyed youth exclaimed.

"Suzaku!" Rinne ordered to her demon "Open us a path!" The fiery peacock chirped loudly in response, and flapped its wings, unleashing a wave of fire that repelled almost every demon in the area, dealing great damage as well. The wing-haired girls, in particular, found themselves under great distress from the flames, shrieking in agony as they slowly vanished, losing magnetite.

" _Those demons seem to be weak to fire attacks..._ " Tetsuo noticed.

"Asakura-kun, stay alert!" the mysterious girl sternly called her fellow hunter "If you see a demon, strike it down quickly." the youth nodded, showing his understanding, and so the two hunters rushed to the stairs, with their demons following in tow. As he looked around, Tetsuo noticed two more moon-headed demons were running towards them.

"Angel-san!" he called, prompting his demon to unleash lightning attacks on them. Immediately, the two demons were knocked out, and began dematerializing, dropping magnetite.

" _Those demons are weak against lightning, instead..._ " the hunter noticed as he headed up the stairs, following Rinne. As they went up the stairs, Tetsuo's eyes went above them, and spotted two more moon-headed demons. Their bags were aimed on Napaea, and from them two blue magical needles were shot out, hitting her.

"Ah! What the..." Suddenly, the little fairy demon began to feel drowsy "Why… Why am I… So… Sleepy…?" she slowly lowered on the ground and laid down, fast asleep.

"Napaea-san!" Tetsuo called, as Rinne and her demons spotted the assailants as well.

"Angel-san, strike down the one on the right!" the amber-eyed youth ordered, to which the winged demon immediately shot lightning bolts against the demon.

"Gryphon, you take the one on the left." Rinne ordered to her own demon, which immediately spread its wings and lunged up, mauling the demon with its claws. The two demons fell down from the spot they were perched on as they slowly disintegrated, losing the mineral which enabled them to have a physical presence.

"Do you have anything to wake up that demon?" the girl asked to her fellow hunter, and Kabuso heard the question, while it licked the fairy's face, in a vain attempt to wake her up.

"One of the thingies I found should help..." it remarked, before jumping on his master's shoulder and whispering in his ear the description of the object it had in mind. Tetsuo nodded and immediately took a golden-colored stone from his inventory, then held it next to the fairy demon, who slowly stirred awake.

"Ah… Wh-What happened?" Napaea asked, upon waking up.

"Some demons had put you to sleep." her concerned master replied "Are you all right?" The little fairy nodded began lifting back up, next to her master.

"Sorry for falling asleep on you, Tetsuo-kun." she said, before winking at him "I'm ready to go, now."

"Then let's not lose one more minute!" the youth exclaimed, and the party immediately resumed walking up the stairs. Kabuso swiftly stepped ahead of everyone else.

"I'll see what's up ahead." it said.

"Stay safe!" Tetsuo exclaimed, concernedly. Eventually, the two hunters reached the end of the stairs, along with their demons. However, as Kabuso stepped at the end of the stairs, two blades of wind were directed at him. Immediately, the cat demon shrieked in fright as it jumped away from the slashing gusts.

"Demons over the stairs!" the amber-eyed youth noticed, as Kabuso jumped back next to him, frightened.

"Don't worry, kitty-cat!" Napaea smiled at the cat demon, before winking at him "I've got this!~" Then, she immediately flied to the exposed spot, facing upwards, and attacked with her own gusts of wind the wing-haired demons responsible for the attack. Her blade of wind clashes with the enemy demon's attacks, repelling them. Then, she attacked the flying girls with small balls of fire, defeating them. The demons fell to the ground, out cold, and began fading from existence.

"Targets down!" Tetsuo called, as he and Rinne stepped on the final stair, along with their demons. Napaea flew down to Kabuso and smiled warmly while gently petting it.

"No one lays a finger on this adorable kitty~" the fairy murmured, while the cat purred under her hands, enjoying her attentions. In the meantime, the two hunters looked around, and Tetsuo's jaw dropped as he saw different demons roaming around.

"These demons..." he uttered, impressed "They look… Strong..." His eyes wandered around the room, catching dragons with the body of a sea creature and with the head and hind legs of a deer, and demons with a crooked appearance, small bat wings and a small, green purse latched on their belly.

"In fact, they are stronger than the fiends we found on the lower floor." Rinne confirmed "We'll have to be nimble on our feet, and avoid fighting unless necessary."

"I guess we'll have to save our energies for the demon at the top of the palace..." Tetsuo understood.

"Exactly." the stoic girl confirmed, with a nod.

"Heard that, guys?" the amber-eyed youth immediately turned to his demons "We're fighting only the demons that are on our way. No fight-seeking."

"Understood." Angel nodded.

"Those guys look mighty strong..." Kabuso murmured, intimidated by the new enemies before them.

"Don't worry, kitty-cat~ I'll protect you!" Napaea said, gently stroking the cat demon's head.

"Through them. And fast." Rinne said, and the two hunters immediately began rushing through the area, trying their best to avoid enemy demons while looking for another way up the building. Fortunately, they managed to discreetly slide among the demons and find a second stairway.

"Something tells me that they were expecting any human intruder to die in the ground floor or at the end of the first stairway..." Tetsuo said, as he rushed up the stairs with his fellow hunter.

"Agreed." the girl replied. However, as they reached the second floor, the situation changed. Some deer-headed demons spotted the two hunters and began flying towards them.

"Er, Enomoto-san?" the amber-eyed youth called the girl's attention, with some fright in his voice.

"I know." Rinne replied, before calling her demon "Suzaku!" the peacock chirped loudly and flapped its wings, unleashing a wave of fire once more, which repelled the assailants. "Let's finish them off. Asakura-kun!" she then called her fellow rookie hunter.

"Yes!" he nodded, before calling out to his own demon "Napaea-san!"

"On it!" The fairy readily replied, with a nod of her own, then she began shooting fire balls at the deer-headed demons, along with Suzaku. The fiends cried out in agony as they lost magnetite and faded.

"So cool..." Kabuso murmured, its eyes sparkling as it watched Napaea, while she attacked the deer-headed dragons. Upon finishing, the fairy winked at the cat demon and blew it a kiss, making it chuckle rather embarrassedly.

"We must hurry." Rinne reminded her companion "Remember, keep a low profile." Tetsuo nodded, and so, the two hunters quickly moved away from the area, before any more demons could spot them. They managed to get through the floor while keeping themselves concealed from the eyes of the demons populating it. They made it to the next stairway unscathed, and immediately began rising up to the third floor.

However, much to their dismay, they were spotted by some demons upon reaching the end of the stairs.

"What?! Humans?" a crooked, bat-winged demon exclaimed upon seeing the two hunters.

"Would've never expected humans to come this far..." another demon of the same kind added.

"Well, they must be pretty tired from the trip here..." a third bat-winged fiend said "Killing them shouldn't be too hard..." The three crooked fiends began chuckling darkly from the statement as they flied towards the hunters, along with a couple more demons of the same kin.

"Demons inbound!" Rinne exclaimed as she and Tetsuo noticed the assailants approaching.

"Leave this to me!" Angel said, as she moved to intercept the flock of demons, and aimed her hands at them. Then, she released an attack of light against them, repelling them. The fiends shrieked in anguish as they were pushed back by the attack.

" _They seem weak against the light..._ " Tetsuo observed, as the demons tried fighting back by shooting small fireballs.

"Karasu!" Rinne called her demon.

"On it, Rinne!" the Tengu replied, as he skillfully twirled his staff in his hands, then slashed the air, creating a gust of wind which clashed with the demons' fire attacks, dissolving them.

"Let me join in!" Napaea exclaimed, as she attacked the demons with her own windy slash, created by swinging a flying kick in the air, which struck the assailants. The fiends which had mocked the two hunter had been quickly rendered powerless.

"And now, for the finish!" Karasu said, as he held his staff between his hands and made a hand sign, creating an attack of heavenly light which proved to be the final blow against the demons, which began fading as they cried out in agony.

"Ha, take that, suckers!" the Tengu exclaimed, in victory.

"Good job, but we're not done yet." Rinne reminded "Now we know how to strike them down most effectively." Everyone nodded in agreement at the undeniable statement, and so the party resumed its rush towards the top of the building. Along the way, the two hunters avoided pointless confrontations and, when it was not possible, defended themselves with their weapons and their demons, striking their enemies down as swiftly as possible.

Eventually, they reached the top, where they found the demon they were looking for. A humanoid with an owl's head and feathered wings.

"Humans." the demon said, in a calm, deep voice "How dare you intrude my lair?"

"We're here to destroy you, demon." Rinne replied, to which the demon laughed. Its laugh had an almost solemn tone.

"And you think you can destroy me, Andras, Marquis of Hell?" it said "How conceited you are, humans! I shall show you how truly powerless you truly are!"

"What have you done to the big, colorful screens?" Napaea asked, infuriated.

"Screens? Are you talking about those pits of hollowness?" Andras replied "I am merely testing them."

"You want to use those screens against the humans that have built them?!" Tetsuo asked, with shock and a hint of fury in his own voice.

"Precisely." the owl-headed demon answered "What humans have built is constantly under their eyes, taking their attention, until all that's left of them is their obsession for their own work. In contemplating their beloved monuments, they become hollow, losing every willingness to act within them." It then quoted a phrase from Shakespeare, using it in favor of its argument "And enterprises of great pitch and moment… With this regard, their currents turn awry, and lose the name of action. It is from this hollowness, this impending and devouring sloth, that we demons gain our strength. Why we should not take advantage of it?"

"We won't allow it!" Tetsuo retorted, strongly "You're not the one who gets to say what we are!" In response, the demon let out its laugh once more, as a magical circle appeared under its feet, before multiplying on the ground. Four more circles were created, and from them, copies of the Marquis of Hell rose, joining in the demon's spiteful laughter.

"Let me show you, the true weakness of humans, and the superiority of us demons! You shall know the chill of death!" it solemnly proclaimed "The demons that have joined you shall not be spared, for they dishonor themselves by serving such weak and helpless creatures." Then, it charged against the two hunters and their demons, along with its clones. Tetsuo quickly unsheathed his katana, which was met with sturdy claws, and repelled one of the owl-headed fiends, while Napaea repelled another one's assault by shooting a small fireball.

"Back off, you creeps!" the little fairy shouted as she fought by her master's side, attacking the two fiends with balls of fire. While some hit their targets, causing them to shriek in pain, some were avoided. A third owl-headed attacker flew towards Tetsuo, as he struggled against its two clones, but it was quickly met by a light attack from Angel. The demon was damaged, but not as much as the assailants which had been struck by fire, hinting at Andras's glaring weakness against flames.

Meanwhile, the remaining two owl-headed demons charged against Rinne and Karasu Tengu, who clashed with them. Rinne defended herself with her twin knives, while the Marquis of Hell's claws were met with the black-winged demon's staff. As soon as both the attackers were pushed back, Karasu swung his staff in the air, generating two flaming slashes and directing them against the demons. The fiends responded by crafting two spikes of ice and hurling them against the fire, but the only result of their action was the division of the slashes into four little flaming gusts, which finally struck the demons. Upon being repelled, the owl-headed fiends responded to the enemy fire with ice, which was to be inevitably shattered by Karasu's fire attacks and by Rinne's knives, enchanted with fire by her demon's staff.

Kabuso was simply standing there, watching as the battle unfolded. However, once the five demons had been pushed back, they settled for trying to attack the two hunters and the demons fighting by their side by hurling ice spikes against them. The cat demon's eyes widened in horror as it noticed that one of the sharp and icy attacks was heading towards him. However, right before it could reach its target, just as Kabuso was bracing itself, the ice spike was destroyed by a small fireball, shot by none other than Napaea.

"Like. I. Said." she said, winking at the cat "No one lays a finger on my adorable kitty~"

"Th-Thank you, Napaea-san..." Kabuso replied, blushing.

"Suzaku!" Rinne called, and the fiery peacock flapped its wings, releasing a wave of fire which struck all five demons.

"Angel-san!" Tetsuo called, as well, prompting his demon to flap her wings, summoning needles all around her, and then twirl around, hurling the spikes against the five fiends, and striking them gravely. Two of them vanished, their magnetite the only thing that was left of them. However, Andras was not done. It flapped its wings, as some feathers flew around, and summoned two more clones, to replace the ones it had lost.

"I must commend you for coming this far, humans." the Marquis of Hell remarked "However, your struggle only delays the inevitable." The five owl-headed demons then let out a loud screech, which called many smaller, crooked, bat-winged demons in the area "If I cannot finish you by myself, the demons under my command will fight for me! You shall die here!" The fiends waved their arms, generating an icy mist.

"Be careful, Asakura-kun!" Rinne warned. Just as she finished speaking, Andras and his clones released a wave of ice against the hunters and their demons. Tetsuo and Rinne covered themselves with their arms and weapons, Angel, Suzaku, Gryphon and Karasu Tengu tried to shield themselves with their wings, and Napaea used her body to shield a shocked Kabuso.

"Aaahh!" she shrieked in pain as she felt the full force of the Marquis of Hell's attack, then, once the onslaught of cold ceased, she lowered to the ground, panting, heavily weakened. Both the owl-headed fiends and the bat-winged demons fighting under their orders began closing in.

" _That felt like..._ " Tetsuo thought, as he recovered from the blizzard attack as well " _Like I was being pierced by icy needles..._ " However, there was not too much time to analyze the sensation for him. The rookie hunter looked at his fairy demon, gravely injured, but still trying her best to protect Kabuso.

"Napaea, you're hurt bad!" the cat demon exclaimed, its voice filled with concern.

"As long as you're not hurt… It's fine by me… Kitty-cat..." Napaea replied, looking back at it and trying her best to smile despite the pain.

"Stop it! Please!" Kabuso shouted, tears welling up in its eyes, as two of the five owl-headed attackers prepared to hurl more ice spikes against her, sure to finish her off. Without a second thought, Tetsuo rushed to protect its companions. He wouldn't have let none of the demons fighting by his side die.

"Tetsuo!" Angel exclaimed, quickly understanding the intentions of the young man, as he ran towards the injured fairy and the cat demon she protected, his katana in his grip. It was then that he heard a voice in his head.

" _I'll help you._ "

The amber-eyed youth stood in front of the two little demons as the enemies' ice spikes were speeding towards them. He stood in a defensive position, with his katana held horizontally in front of him, as a new, mysterious light began glowing inside his eyes.

And, upon approaching him, the icy attacks shattered instantly, much to the surprise of his demons and of his fellow hunter, as well as of his enemy.

"What?" the Marquis of Hell exclaimed in utter shock, while Rinne Enomoto simply stood speechless, bewildered by the sight that had just unfolded before her eyes.

"Angel-san, protect and heal Napaea-san and Kabuso!" the amber-eyed hunter ordered his demon as it stared at one of the owl-headed fiends, the original among the copies, and began stepping towards it, while it readied itself for the fight, creating two blades of ice on its arms.

"Yes, Tetsuo." the winged woman replied, before swiftly flying to her fellow demons and crouching beside the injured fairy, then, she put a hand on her, slowly healing her most grievous wounds.

"Here, now you'll feel much better." she said, in a gentle and soothing voice.

"Th-Thank you, Angel..." Napaea replied.

"Thank you, bird lady! Thank you so much!" Kabuso thanked, bowing repeatedly as tears streamed down its face.

"What does that human think he's doing, rushing like that?" one of the bat-winged demons mockingly exclaimed as he rushed at the apparently defenseless youth

"Those demons are weak!" one of the bat-winged demons remarked "Let's finish them!" His bold statement prompted many fiends of the same kind to fly towards the apparently defenseless demons, intent on assaulting them. An equally numerous flock flew towards Rinne and her demons.

"Let's fight together." Angel said.

"Sure thing!" Napaea replied, determinedly.

"Karasu! Suzaku! Take care of these little fish!" the mysterious girl ordered to her demons "Gryphon and I will be going for Andras's clones!"

"Consider it done, Rinne!" the black-winged demon replied, while the fiery peacock simply chirped in response. Immediately, the huntress and her Gryphon ran through the flock of bat-winged demons. Karasu quickly cast a fire enchant on her mistress's knives, before reading himself for the fight. Meanwhile, Tetsuo kept stepping towards Andras, whom, in turn, was awaiting him, ready to clash with his katana.

"Taste this, scoundrels!" he exclaimed, before swinging the staff and generating a sharp gust of wind, which repelled the flock of enemy demons, dealing heavy damage. Suzaku then finished them off with fireballs and waves of fire, making them shriek in agony as they vanished.

In the meantime, Angel and Napaea fought side by side, fending off the bat-winged, crooked demons with slashes of wind, created by the fairy demon, and projections of heavenly light, cast by the winged woman.

Tetsuo kept stepping towards Andras, as the third and final flock of fiends flew towards him, and began shooting fireballs at him. Once again, the amber-eyed youth rose his blade, putting it horizontally before him, and the fireballs just dissolved upon reaching his proximity, much to their shock and rage, prompting the demons to rush at him, with the intent of mauling him with their claws. However, they were met with an unexpectedly powerful slash of Tetsuo's blade, strengthened by gusts of wind, which ultimately cleaved them into oblivion.

Andras rushed at the youth, and its ice blades met his katana, in a clash that marked the start of a dangerous dance of dodges and slashes between the rookie hunter and the Marquis of Hell. As they battled, Rinne and Gryphon attacked the fiend's clones and destroyed them, one by one, with her knives and its claws. After the dance had delivered some cuts on the amber-eyed youth's body, as well as Andras's body, the two adversaries clashed once more, struggling against each other.

"Your power… I should have realized it by the incredible magnetite in your body..." the owl-headed demon observed, as the hunter glared at him "There is a god behind this power of yours." As it finished speaking, Tetsuo sensed Rinne running behind him, heading to the fiend's right side, and jumped back, only to attempt to slash his opponent on its other side.

"Enomoto-san!" he shouted, as his blade was blocked by Andras's ice.

"Yes!" the girl replied, before slashing the fiend's other arm with her fire-imbued knife and shattering its blade of ice. The demon was clearly weakened by the maneuver, and Tetsuo quickly seized the moment to slash at it. Rinne reached the demon's back and, as a result, Andras was quickly met with slashes from its front, as well as from behind him, and was defenseless. A final slash from Tetsuo's katana on its stomach and Rinne's two smaller flame-imbued blades embedding themselves in its back marked the last stand of the Marquis of Hell.

"Ahhh… You conceited… Humans..." Andras uttered, clinging to physical existence as the huntress took her knives out of its back "You are more… Akin to demons… Than you delude yourselves… Into thinking..." As it spoke, it slowly began losing magnetite "We are… Your shadows… Your sloth… Your darkness… Is our strength..." Finally, it vanished completely, after it had spoken its last words, as the two hunters panted and put their weapons back in their sheaths.


	8. 8th Night: Incarnation

8th Night: Incarnation

The two hunters panted, out of exhaustion from the battle they had just survived. Their target, the demon known as Andras, had been eliminated. Their demons were tried from the battle as well.

"Well, doesn't this place host nice parties..." Karasu Tengu commented.

"Kitty-cat!" Napaea called, rushing towards Kabuso "Are you all right?" She looked at it, and was relieved in seeing that it appeared not to be hurt anywhere on its body. The cat demon simply nodded, with teary eyes, and then leaped at her.

"Napaea!" it called, as it pinned her on the ground and nuzzled its head against her "You could have died there!" The little fairy was surprised, but then her features melted in a sweet smile.

"Kabuso..." she sweetly said, as she began patting it "There, there... I'm here..."

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Kabuso cried out, as it began licking Napaea's face, making her giggle.

"H-Hey, stop it! It tickles!" the fairy demon protested among the laughter. Meanwhile, their master, Tetsuo Asakura, slowly lowered his gaze top his hands, the last words of the fiend still ringing in his mind.

" _There is a god behind this power of yours..._ " When he decided to rush to the aid of his demons, he felt an energy flowing inside him. He knew it was that energy that had allowed him to destroy the bat-winged demons in one cleave and take on Andras.

"Asakura-kun!" Rinne called, noticing that something was on the youth's mind. Her stern call snapped Tetsuo out of his thought train. "I would ask you what you're thinking about, but this isn't the place. We need to get back in neutral territory. There, we will talk." He took in his fellow hunter's words and nodded in response.

With that, the two hunters headed towards the ground floor of the palace, followed by their demons. Their path was not devoid of demons to fight, but there were much less, since the majority of the creatures populating the building were distraught over the disappearance of the fiend controlling the area. Upon reaching the ground floor, the hunters got out of the structure, and noticed that the screens had stopped going static and were restored to their normal state.

"Look at the colorful screens!" Napaea exclaimed, in joy "They're back to normal!"

"It seems that Andras's influence on this area has definitely ceased." Angel remarked, smiling warmly at the fairy demon's excitement, to which her master nodded in response.

"So, what was on your mind, back on the palace?" Rinne asked her fellow hunter.

"Oh, that..." Tetsuo replied, thoughtfully "I was thinking about Andras's words… It said that I was that strong because of a god..."

"It probably meant that you're the incarnation of a god." the mysterious girl concluded, crossing her arms, much to the amber-eyed youth's disbelief.

"Is that… Why I was able to fight like that before?" he uttered.

"Can't really say." Rinne replied "I would need to know how you felt as you fought, from the moment you began showing that ability." Tetsuo nodded in agreement, more than willing to comply.

"Well..." he began explaining "As soon as I saw my demons in trouble, I rushed to them without a second thought. It was then that I heard a voice in my head. It said "I'll help you", and then I managed to protect my demons." In hearing his explanation, Rinne's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Have you heard that voice again as you fought?" she asked.

"No, not really..." the amber-eyed youth replied. The huntress considered the words she had heard from him carefully, as she put her fingers under her chin, pensively.

"Hmmm..." she mused "I've never given too much credit to such tales until now, but..." Then, she gave an explanation of her own to her fellow hunter "I had heard that there were some people out there which were actually incarnations of great deities of the past, and, judging by what you just told me, I would say that you're one of them..." Her words shocked the amber-eyed youth.

"So what that demon said was true..." he said, breathlessly.

"I'm surprised just as you are, Asakura-kun." Rinne replied "Do you think you can guess which god you're the incarnation of?" Tetsuo thought about it, before finally shaking his head.

"...No. I saw that there was wind around my blade while I fought the demons, but I haven't noticed anything else..."

"Your magnetite production rate spiked as you fought..." Angel remarked.

"Further signs of it might be coming to you any moment." the girl warned "Stay alert, and if you see anything strange, tell me about it." The youth nodded in response, showing his understanding. Napaea and Kabuso, who were intent to look at the restored screens of Shibuya, went back to their master's side.

"How's it hanging?" the cat demon asked.

"What are you guys talking about?" the fairy added.

"Oh, they are discussing the reason behind the mysterious power Tetsuo used when he had protected you..." Angel explained.

"So, what now?" Tetsuo asked his fellow huntress.

"Let's head back." Rinne replied, to which the youth nodded in agreement. In that moment, Napaea had an idea, and quickly turned to Kabuso.

"Hey, kitty-cat!" she called "Do you mind if I ride you?" Upon hearing the request, the cat demon blushed slightly, and eventually nodded.

"Yay!" the little fairy squealed in excitement as she sat on the cat's back and brushed her face against its head, laughing cheerily. Tetsuo couldn't help but smile at the fun his demons were having with each other.

And so, the two hunters headed out of Shibuya and back to Kichijouji, along with their demons.

"What did you tell your dear ones?" Rinne asked, while she and the young man under her wing walked.

"Huh?" Tetsuo replied, clearly confused.

"What did you tell them when you headed out to meet me?" she asked again, more clearly.

"Oh, well..." the amber-eyed youth earnestly replied "I told my parents that I'm hanging out with a new friend, nothing more."

"At night." the girl continued "Did they say anything about it?"

"Not really..." Tetsuo answered "It's not uncommon for me to hang out at night..."

"Is that so?" Rinne inquired, curiously raising a brow.

"Yes." the youth replied, lifting his gaze to the night sky "Ever since I was a little kid, I've always loved the night. Besides, nightly strolls are a good way to reflect on things and recollect your thoughts." Then, he let out a sigh as his gaze shifted downwards "Of course, my perception of the night has not come out unscathed from the day I learned of demons..."

"You feel freer at night, don't you?" the girl asked, the corners of her mouth turned up into her signature ghost smile.

"Y-Yes, that's it..." Tetsuo replied, taken aback by her statement, which completely matched his feeling "How do you know? Have you felt the same?"

"Yes, that's one way to put it." Rinne replied, earnestly, with a thoughtful expression, as she rose her gaze to the night sky as well. Then, her face took her usual stoic expression once more "Asakura-kun. From now on, you'll need to be careful when you stroll along the streets at night. Check your message log in the Program for any directions from me or S, tell me whenever you see something weird, and, most importantly, be wary of your surroundings, and watch out for "strange" people." Keyword being "strange", the amber-eyed rookie hunter understood the meaning of his fellow huntress's words, and showed that understanding with a nod.

As they chatted, Napaea and Kabuso followed them. The little fairy, sitting on the cat's back, petted its head and scratched under its chin, making it purr in joy and giggling sweetly at its reactions.

"You should check the fusions you can make." Rinne suggested "Do it whenever you get a new demon."

"Oh, thank you, Enomoto-san." Tetsuo replied, opening his portable computer "I'll check it right away." He then took a look at the Demon Fusion page of the program, and noticed that Kabuso and Napaea could be fused in a new demon. According to the program, the resulting demon's name was Ame no Uzume, with the ability to teleport objects and living beings alike from one place to another with little effort. However, there was one problem…

The fusion couldn't be done, since it appeared to require more experience with the use of the program.

" _What does that mean?_ " Tetsuo couldn't help but wonder " _Does it work only after I've spent enough time hunting?_ " Curiously, Napaea flew away from Kabuso's back and closer to her master's face.

"What are you looking at, Tetsuo-kun?" she asked, to which the youth felt embarrassed to reply, as the thought of Pixie's reaction flashed in his mind. Eventually, he answered her question.

"I was looking at the fusions I could do..." Just as he had feared, anger became clearly visible on the fairy's face as she pouted.

"You were planning to fuse me, weren't you?" she retorted "Who did you want to fuse me with, huh?" Tetsuo sighed in response, before giving his reply.

"K-Kabuso..." Hearing that name, all of Napaea's rage rapidly vanished, as she looked at her master with stupor, and a twinkle in her eyes.

"Really?" The hunter found himself confused my his demon's severe mood shift.

"Um… Yes..." he replied.

"Yaaaay!" the fairy exclaimed in joy, before darting towards a confused Kabuso "You heard that, kitty-cat? We're going to be fused!" The cat's eyes widened in stupor, as Napaea happily cuddled it.

" _Wow…_ _She really took a liking to it, didn't she?_ " Tetsuo couldn't help but think.

"Well, not right away..." he clarified "Looks like I'll need to be using the program more, before I'll be able to fuse you..."

"Awww..." the fairy whimpered, in slight disappointment, while her master looked at his fellow huntress with a gaze that asked for some explanation.

"The Demon Summoning Program tracks the time spent using it." Rinne said, quickly understanding the youth's concerns "So, basically, by hunting and increasing the power of your demons, more options will be unlocked."

"I see..." Tetsuo mused, having some degree of understanding.

"They put some kind of progression in the program..." Karasu remarked "How clever..." Meanwhile, Napaea kept happily cuddling Kabuso, who didn't fail to notice an object, and quickly collected it, before heading back to its master's side. It was a stone which bore a vivid red color.

"Oh, that stone looks amazing!" the fairy exclaimed, looking at the object with sparkling eyes.

"It's a little hot to hold in the mouth..." the demon cat replied. Eventually the two hunters were a few blocks away from Kichijouji's residential area.

"Well then..." Rinne said "This is where we part ways. Do you have any questions?"

"Just one." Tetsuo quickly replied, as his cat demon stepped next to him, holding the colored stone in his mouth "Kabuso found this stone, not that different from the Life Stones I've seen until now, at least shape-wise. What is it?" 

"That's a Maragi Stone." the huntress explained "It'll unleash a wave of fire upon use. Should you find yourself cornered, resorting to it would be a good choice."

"Understood." the amber-eyed youth nodded "Thank you, Enomoto-san." The girl nodded back in reply.

"Take care on your way home, Asakura-kun." she recommended.

"Thank you, Enomoto-san." Tetsuo replied "You take care, as well." With that, the two hunters went their separate ways. The youth stored his demons, his items and his weapon in the Program as he walked, heading to his home. Upon seeing him arrive, his parents were flooded with relief as they went to greet him at the entrance.

"Welcome back, Tetsuo." his father was the first to speak.

"Thank you, dad." the amber-eyed youth readily replied, with a reassuring smile.

"Are you all right, dear?" his mother couldn't help but ask, out of concern for him.

"Don't worry, mom." he replied, with a nod "I am." The three of them entered the house.

"So, how did your nightly walk with your friend go?" Soichiro asked.

"Oh, it went fine, thank you!" his son readily replied.

"I hope you didn't get yourselves in shady places..." the youth's mother added, fearful of what could possibly happen to her son during his nightly strolls.

"Don't worry, mom." Tetsuo smiled, with the intent to quench the woman's worried "I've been careful, and I'll always be. My friend thinks the same thing."

"That's good to know." his father said "Hopefully we'll be able to see this new friend of yours, one day..."

"Maybe, it'll be sooner than you might think..." the amber-eyed youth replied, scratching the back of his head, eliciting a chuckle from both of his parents. However, he knew that he could not guarantee that his words would have become reality. With that, Tetsuo saw his parents off and headed to his room. After changing for the night, he laid in his bed and looked at his portable computer, checking the chat log of his demons.

"Angel-san..." he typed "Maybe Enomoto-san will not contact me tomorrow night. What do you suggest to do in that case?"

"Tetsuo..." was the demon's reply "It is you who should make such a decision. Do you have an idea about it?"

"Well..." the hunter wrote "During the morning, I'll keep an eye on Shibusawa-san, and in the night, I'll try going on a nightly stroll on my own, to see if I can find any more information… How does that sound?"

"It does sound like a solid idea." Angel replied.

"Of course, if there are findings, I'll have to report them to Enomoto-san and, maybe, to S-san." the youth added.

"Excellent." the winged woman replied "Perhaps we could meet other hunters or people with high magnetite, this way..." It was then that Tetsuo heard the sound of a notification. Another demon has messaged him. It was Napaea.

"Tetsuo-kun, can't you let me out?" she had asked "I want to play with the kitty!"

"Sorry, but that's a no can do." the youth replied "Both of you are small demons, but still, there's no telling to what could happen while you play..."

"Awwww…" was the fairy's reaction.

"Well, since we'll be going out tomorrow night, you can play with Kabuso then." Tetsuo typed, in the hopes of lifting his demon's spirits, and it seemed to work.

"Really? Great!" was her reply "I'm holding you onto it!~" Tetsuo smiled at the message and then, after seeing his demons off, closed his personal computer and tucked in for the night.

In his sleep, his well known dream visited him again, evolving, and showing him a new truth.

" _Tetsuo…_ _I can sense you..._ "

 _The young man found himself flying over the path of toori gates, tossed about by the wind, as he heard that strong voice._

" _You're coming to me..."_

 _Eventually, the wind moved Tetsuo towards the ground, making him land in a garden. It was filled with cherry blossoms, but he could tell that it was bigger than the one his dream had started from. In its center, a gray figure with long, white hair, was sitting._

" _Come closer, will you?" the amber-eyed youth heard that voice again, and, seeing no other options, decided to obey the voice and stepped closer to the figure. He could see that it was a quite muscular man, with dark gray skin, almost as if it was an ancient bronze statue, and long white hair. His forehead was covered by a golden headpiece, and he was wearing ancient Japanese warrior pants. He held a seven-branched sword in his hand._

" _I've been waiting for you for quite a bit." the imposing man said, with a smile, looking up at him "You sure took your sweet time."_

" _Were you the one calling out to me?" Tetsuo asked in disbelief. "Who are you?"_

" _I'm Susano-o." the figure simply replied._

" _Susano-o?!" the youth exclaimed in utter stupor "The Japanese god, ruler of storms?"_

" _The one and only." Susano-o replied, confidently. Tetsuo processed the situation and quickly understood the meaning of that encounter._

" _So..." he exclaimed, in realization "You're the god that has been granting me his power!"_

" _Of course." the statuesque man replied, still cordially "You're my incarnation, after all. My blood runs in your veins." The youth took in the god's words with wide eyes._

" _How does it feel, to know that you have a god in your belly?" Susano-o asked._

" _It feels… Unreal..." the still thunderstruck young man uttered, eliciting a chuckle from the ruler of storms._

" _Don't worry about that." he said "In time, you'll understand, and get used to it." His tone gradually became serious "For now, all you need to know is that you're my incarnation, and that I give you power." Unable to say anything else, the youth simply nodded in response. The statuesque god looked up at the night sky, in which an half-moon was shining, cornered by an ocean of stars._

" _I'm afraid that our time is over." he said, before turning his gaze back to his incarnation "Hopefully we'll have more time to talk in the next bout, and you will know all you'll need to know before you awaken..."_

 _As he finished speaking those words, lightning flashed and thunder crackled, marking the end of the dream._


	9. 9th Night: Through Different Eyes

9th Night: Through Different Eyes

Tetsuo Asakura's eyes shot open as he woke up from a strange dream, panting. He vividly remembered what he had seen in his slumber.

" _Susano-o..._ " he thought. He had seen a deity in his dream. A deity that lived within him. He rose and stood up from his bed, ready to begin his morning routine, his head a jumbled mess of swirling thoughts, still yearning for order. Still pondering on the recent events, the amber-eyed youth headed to the kitchen, where his mother's voice brought him back to reality.

"Good morning, Tetsuo!" the woman gently called "Have you slept well?"

"Good morning, mom." the young man replied "Yes, I did. What about you?"

"Oh, I slept nice enough." his mother smiled, as they sat together for breakfast "Say, do you and your friends have any plans for Hanami?"

"Well… We're thinking of going out in the afternoon." Tetsuo replied, with a thoughtful expression "We still haven't decided about what we'll do, though..." Then, he turned his gaze to his mother "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I would like to spend some family time..." his mother replied, gently, while taking spoonful of her breakfast "So, I wanted to pick a time for it, and ask you whether and when you're busy."

"I see." the youth smiled, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

"So, please, ask your friends if they're planning anything." the woman asked, in a more serious tone, but with a warm smile on her face "If they'll be gathering in the afternoon, you can always join them and come back to us in the evening."

"Ok, mom." her son nodded, with a smile. Eventually they finished breakfast, and Tetsuo, fully awake and perked up, stood up and stepped towards the door of the house.

"I'm off." he said, as he walked out, heading to the school.

"Take care." his mother called as he stepped away. It didn't take long for him to meet his friend, Ayumu Hirabayashi, on his way to the bus stop.

"Hey there, Tetsuo!" he cheerfully greeted him, patting his shoulder "How are you doing?"

"I'm doing fine." the youth smiled "What about you, Ayumu?"

"I'm feeling good! Weekend is approaching!" his friend replied, energetically.

"It almost sounds like you've got plans." Tetsuo replied.

"Yep!" Ayumu replied, with a huge grin plastered on his face "Say, want to go out and about in town Saturday?"

"Yes, I sure do!" The amber-eyed young man replied, without hesitation.

"Cool!" his energetic neighbor exclaimed "We'll be having some fun!"

"I wonder if someone else we know will have the same idea as us on Saturday..." Tetsuo mused "After all, the arcade is busiest on Saturday, and the streets are full of people..."

"True that." Ayumu replied, with a nod "Wonder if we'll bump into lil' Sanshiro again..."

"Maybe, who knows..." the youth concluded. Eventually, the two friends reached the bus stop, and, once their vehicle arrived, they entered and sat inside. As it had become usual for him, Tetsuo scanned for signs of abnormality, but then, once he knew everything was alright, he gazed out the window, focusing on the many thoughts swimming in his mind.

" _I'll have to contact Enomoto-san as soon as I get home, and tell her about my findings._ " he thought " _Also, now that I think of it, I can't help but wonder how S-san is distributing the Program… I'll have to ask him about that, as well…_ _Not to mention, I still have Shibusawa-san to worry about..._ " He got back to reality as soon as he saw the familiar building of the Kichijouji Seijou High School from the window. Tetsuo and Ayumu stepped out of the bus and headed towards the gates, where their friends, Hideaki Miyahara and Izumi Murakami.

"Oh, hello, Asakura-kun, Hirabayashi-kun!" the latter greeted cheerfully, while her boyfriend smiled "How are you two doing?"

"Oh, we're doing fine, thank you!" Tetsuo replied.

"What about you two?" Ayumu replied "Got any plans for the weekend?" The third-year student couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head at his friend's excitement.

"You're already looking forward to the weekend, aren't you, Ayumu?" he commented, to which Tetsuo sighed and smiled in silent agreement.

"Well, nothing too different from usual." his girlfriend added "I bet he already does have plans."

"Eeeyup." Ayumu excitedly replied, with a nod "Just hanging out around town with Tetsuo here."

"What about you guys?" Tetsuo asked, scratching the back of his head.

"We don't know yet." Hideaki replied.

"But we'll most likely spend it together." Izumi added. Ayumu failed to hold back a snort, to which Tetsuo and Izumi blushed, and Hideaki narrowed his eyes in annoyance. Tetsuo's blush intensified and his friend immediately recollected himself. Both the upbeat youth and his calmer friend coughed embarrassedly.

"Sorry 'bout that." Ayumu quickly apologized.

"It's fine." Hideaki sighed, before turning his look to his amber-eyed friend "You should keep an eye on him, or else his rambling could get him in trouble."

"Hey! I resent that!" the energetic youth retorted, feeling offended, while his more composed neighbor let out an embarrassed chuckle.

"Yeah, I know what you mean..." he couldn't help but add, to which his neighbor immediately turned to him in indignation.

"What the hell, man?" he exclaimed, his tone lying in between angered and pleading "You're supposed to have my back!" Izumi and Hideaki failed to hold back amused chuckles at the youth's reaction.

A few steps away, Kyoko Shibusawa, who was witnessing the scene, unnoticed, let out an amused giggle as well. After that pleasant exchange, the students headed to their classes for the lessons of the day.

Instinctively, Tetsuo's eyes wandered around the classroom, searching for any signs of abnormality, while making an effort to keep himself as focused on the lesson as possible. Luckily, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Lessons passed by quickly until lunch break came.

Once the bells rang, that was the amber-eyed student's cue to leave the classroom. Tetsuo's head was filled with swirling thoughts as he walked along the hallway of the school, by himself. His head was still attempting to grasp the situation he had found himself in.

" _To think that not only I've been thrust in a world filled with demons, but that I have a Shinto god within me… And not just any god, either, but the god of storms… I did learn my way of moving around in this predicament, but that doesn't mean I'm fully used to it… What else should I expect? And what's more, what about my family and friends?_ " A shadow of concern appeared on his thoughtful expression " _I can't help but think that they'll end up getting involved with this, sometime soon..._ " As he walked, he glanced out of the windows lining up along the hallway's wall, and he noticed something. A girl, sitting on a bench in the courtyard, gazing at a tree. Tetsuo recognized her from the pink color of her hair.

" _Shibusawa-san?_ " he thought, as he got closer to the window, to get a better look at her, not forgetting that he was supposed to look for hints about her knowledge of the demon underworld, and on her intentions of acting upon it. His gaze shifted from the girl to the tree she was looking at, and he understood the reason rather quickly. There were four crows resting on the branches of that tree. Their heads were turning in an almost frantic fashion, as their red eyes scanned what was around them. One of them stopped the movements of its head, as its gaze seemed to pierce back into Kyoko's. All of this happened under the amber-eyed youth's gaze, of which the pink-haired girl seemed to be blissfully unaware.

"Hey there, Tetsuo!" A cheerful voice called, startling Tetsuo and prompting him to turn to the source. It was none other than his neighbor.

"Oh, it's you, Ayumu." he replied, as he relaxed.

"Hehe, sorry if I startled you." the carefree youth said, with a grin.

"At least you don't put as much effort into it as Murakami-san." Tetsuo smiled back.

"Heh, true that." his friend agreed, as he approached the window as well "What are you looking at, by the way?" he looked and saw Kyoko Shibusawa as well. She had not moved from the bench. "Oh, we speak of Murakami-san, and the one who gives her the goods is right under us..." Tetsuo stood silent, merely nodding in agreement with the undeniable statement. Ayumu continued "She's quite aloof… I can't tell if it's because she doesn't feel that confident with other people here, being a freshman and all, or anything else..."

"Well, we know that her passion for occult is genuine." Tetsuo added, gaining a nod of approval from his neighbor "After all, her most frequent contacts are with Kojiro and Murakami-san..."

"And you." Ayumu added, grinning once more, to which the amber-eyed youth flinched, blushing in embarrassment. "We could ask her to join the Occult club, sometime." he then observed, as he returned a tad more serious "You and Murakami-san are there, after all..."

"Good point." Tetsuo replied, with a nod. And so, the two friends walked alongside one another as they kept conversing.

"I can't help but wonder how far her passion actually goes, considering what she gives to Murakami-san..." Ayumu couldn't help but remark "I mean, where does she actually get the stuff? Does she make it or what?"

"I don't know..." Tetsuo answered with a shrug, hiding the thoughts over the matter that were forming in his mind.

" _I know that she can see demons, as well..._ " he thought, also tracing his own experiences during the most recent days " _And something like this makes everyone see the world with different eyes… It makes me wonder, when did she begin seeing them…?_ "

"Moving on..." Ayumu said "Are you and your family planning anything for Hanami?"

"Well..." his raven-haired friend briefly thought about the answer he had to give, putting his fingers under his chin, before looking at him and replying "We really should spend some family time on this occasion, especially considering how my father is away from home for a lot of time due to work..."

"It's fine, I get you." Ayumu said, reassuringly, before moving his gaze away thoughtfully "I mean, the same goes with my dad, and that leaves me in charge of the house more often than not..." Then, he looked back at his neighbor "So, what did you have in mind?"

"Well, it's not really official yet, and I don't want to put my hand over fire on it just yet, but..." Tetsuo replied "I think we'll be having dinner together in the evening, which leaves me free to join you guys in case you're doing anything in the afternoon." 

"Gotcha." Ayumu nodded excitedly "We were thinking of hanging out together in Inokashira, on Sunday."

"I see..." Tetsuo mused, with a smile of relief, before adding "In that case, you can count me in."

"Amazing!" Ayumu exclaimed in excitement.

"Who else is coming?" his neighbor asked.

"Well, the two occult lovebirds, of course..." the slightly spike-haired youth replied "I'll ask Kojiro and the two newspaper lovebirds too, later on..."

"I see..." Tetsuo mused, before asking "Let me know what they say to that."

"You got it!" Ayumu assured, with his typical, cheerful grin.

In the meantime, as the two friends had left the window, Kyoko was still peering back in the eyes of the raven sitting on the branch, until a faint cry called her attention.

"Meow..."

Upon hearing that timid meow, the petite girl immediately turned her head away from the crow and towards its source, realizing that a black cat had found its way on top of the courtyard wall. She followed her impulse to get closer to it, as the crows flew away from the tree. The cat slightly flinched in caution as Kyoko approached it.

"Shhh… I won't hurt you." she gently said as she slowly got closer, and then began petting it. The cat purred in satisfaction under her caresses. However, as soon as it sensed someone else close by, it meowed once more and ran away, jumping down the wall. Instinctively, Kyoko looked at her side and saw one of her schoolmates.

"Oh, Soma Kojiro." she said, showing a faint smile.

"Something told me that I would have found you here, Kyoko-chan." the bespectacled young man replied as he approached her. "Looks like that cat has come here again..."

"Something tells me it's taken a liking to you..." Kojiro commented with a smile, prompting the girl to blush. "It always finds you when it comes here, doesn't it?"

"What can I say..." Kyoko sighed, as she came down from the wall, in front of him "I've always been drawn to what people tend to ignore..."

"Ah, I completely understand." the young man replied, with a nod of agreement.

"Say, Kojiro..." she asked, musingly "Have you ever wondered how they might see us?"

"About how what might see us?" the bespectacled youth replied, confusedly.

"Crows, and cats..." she replied "Has it ever crossed your mind, the thought of how it might feel to look through their eyes?"

"Hmmm..." Kojiro mused, as he began thinking about the topic "Not until now..."

"It could be refreshing, to look how a cat or a crow would look for once..." Kyoko said, raising her gaze to the sky "After all, they aren't impeded by those obstacles that hamper our movement… They're much freer..." The young man in front of her listened to her words.

"Well, to look through different eyes would be interesting in any case…" he then replied "I can't say surely about cats, but crows fly in flocks, don't they?"

"Hm?" Kyoko looked back at him, curious to see what his point was.

"Animals, as free as they might be, would be inclined to seek their fellows, right?" Kojiro explained, prompting the petite, pink-haired girl to put her fingers under her chin and think about the statement, before nodding.

"You're right." she smiled, to which the young man smiled back.

"It's for these reasons that people talk to one another..." he asked "Speaking of which, have you ever thought about joining the Occult Club? Tetsuo and Murakami-san would surely help you to move around..." Kyoko simply shook her head.

"I'm not one to join packs..." she replied "True, I enjoy talking with people who have my same interests, but I don't really need clubs to find such people. I didn't need to enter the club to know Tetsuo and Murakami-san..."

"Wouldn't it make it easier for you to at least look there?" Kojiro asked, once more. The girl had an answer, once more

"Only because there are more people to look at." she replied "I find it more meaningful to search on my own accord..."

"I see..." Kojiro murmured, thoughtfully, before smiling at her. Kyoko smiled back.

"This was an interesting conversation." she stated, to which her fellow student nodded in agreement.

"It really was." he replied, scratching the back of his head "I think I'll be heading back inside, what about you?"

"I think I'll still look around here." she calmly replied.

"Ok, then." Kojiro smiled, waving at her as he was on his way back to the school building "See you later!"

"Bye-bye!" Kyoko waved back with a warm smile, before raising her gaze back to the sky.

Meanwhile, the black cat that had enjoyed the petite girl's attentions, walked along the roofs of buildings which were adjacent to the school, until it found its way in front of a blonde-haired child, dressed in a purple dress and holding a teddy bear in her arm, which immediately crouched to pet the cat.

"Here, kitty." she smiled, as she petted the cat, making it purr once more. Then, the child rose back up, her amber eyes set upon the school, and upon a pink-haired girl who was looking at the sky.

"You know some really interesting people, Kyoko-chan..." she mused, patting her teddy bear's head, while the cat curled at her feet.


End file.
